


Sooner or Later

by The_Moments_Gone



Category: Girl Meets World
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-05
Updated: 2016-06-13
Packaged: 2018-04-25 01:38:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 74,723
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4941694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Moments_Gone/pseuds/The_Moments_Gone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It’s entirely possibly to forget about the long game. Especially when the game board is always changing, and there are no written rules.  Or Josh learns to be an adult while Maya grows up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part I: Let's Talk About Sex

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Josh had discovered there are a few downsides to surpassing the age of majority. While it wasn't so apparent when he'd first hit 18, now that he was rounding on the downside of 20 he's starting to notice a few things. Such as the fact that he was now privy to what had previously been deemed 'adult conversation.'

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment’s Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 3,545  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial. 

 _Official Disclaimer_ : All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song _Sooner or Later_ and I don’t own that either.

* * *

 

Josh had discovered there are a few downsides to surpassing the age of majority. While it wasn't so apparent when he'd first hit 18, now that he was rounding on the downside of 21 he's starting to notice a few things. Such as the fact that he was now privy to what had previously been deemed ‘adult conversation.’

"I think Maya's sleeping with Friar."

It's not the sentence in and of itself that's troublesome. It’s more likely the fact that Shawn had pretty much made this announcement in the middle of a late dinner on a Friday night, while the teen in question was at the movies with the aforementioned cowboy, the week’s football game called on account of the fact that it hadn’t stopped raining since Monday. The good news was that her best friend wasn’t present either, too busy at the Minkus residence prepping for the New York State Math League the next morning. Josh found himself relieved Auggie had chosen this evening to beg to be allowed to skip Riley’s competition in favor of a long weekend at Dewy’s.

There should have also be consideration given to the fact that Cory took in this information like a champ, swallowing his bite of meatloaf and taking a sip of his water entirely too calmly. He set his fork down gently and then turned to his best friend on the bench beside him. “That is ridiculous.”

If Josh were a betting man, he would have said that his brother had -maybe- another five minutes in the current conversation before he stuck his fingers in his ears and la la la’d himself out of the room. Maybe.

But either Shawn didn’t notice this, or he plainly didn’t care because he took another sip of his beer and looked pointedly across the table to Topanga. “You don’t live at my apartment.”

Something could be said that Shawn didn’t live at his apartment either, due to the fact that he’s there for maybe two weeks out of the month between assignments. Since Katy got her first call back on an off-Broadway production of something or another, Shawn single-handedly picked up the slack that Maya's mother had left behind, making sure to uphold his Birthday promise that he wouldn't allow anyone to grow up the way that he did. When he wasn’t traveling for the web magazine, he hung his hat in a spacious 2-bedroom loft in TriBeCa. Whether or not it was a conscious decision on anyone's part, Maya had more or less taken over the second bedroom; using it on weekends when her mother had long rehearsal days, or weeks when they were both gone for too long because his neighborhood felt safer than hers - and she liked the light better in his apartment for painting. 

No one bothered to mention that if Maya was, in fact, sleeping with Lucas, there really wasn’t anything anyone could do to stop her. Instead, Topanga watched her husband try to breathe and just shook her head. “State your case, counselor.” Her tone took on a courtroom quality, and she folded her hands under her chin.

Cory smiled sharply, nodding his head towards his wife, as Shawn shook his again. “A fraction his wardrobe is in her closet.” He said after a minute, “and she wears at least one article of his clothing on a daily basis.”

“The same could be said for Riley.” While she wasn’t outright telling him he was seeing things, Josh could tell that Topanga was trying very hard not to. “Are you trying to tell me that Lucas is sleeping with her too?”

“He’s not trying to tell you that.” Cory practically shouted at no one in particular. “Please tell me that he’s not trying to tell you that.” Finally he turned to his best friend. “You’re not trying to tell her that are ya, Shawnie?”

A huff and a deep breath, and Shawn looked up at Topanga again. “Did you really have to get him started?”

“He was already started.” She told him harshly. “I’m just allowing him an avenue to freak out with.” A reassuring pat to her husband’s shoulder and Topanga stood, collecting dinner plates. This was one of those conversations that needed coffee. Or wine.

There was a short lull in the conversation, as Topanga put the dishes in the sink, and Shawn steered Cory into the living room, where Josh thought he would be able to slip away to the guest room and pretend he had never been involved with this conversation. It lasted all of three seconds before reality came back to him.

“Can you grab your brother a beer, Josh? Before he hyperventilates.”

He was on his feet without thinking, pulling open the door to the refrigerator and turning back to the living room. “You want another, Shawn?”

“Only if you guys are out of that burgundy we had last week.”

While that didn’t exactly answer Josh’s question, the fact that Topanga muttered a quick ‘I’ve got this,” as she reached past him for a bottle of wine, and then pulled two glasses out of the cabinet was enough. Assuming for a second that the reason they were having this conversation in front of him meant that the usual rules of the house applied, Josh grabbed himself a Heineken, and made sure to pop the tops before following his sister-in-law to the couch. “I still haven’t heard anything that sounds like actual evidence.”

From his place on the couch, Cory smiled. It would have unnerved Josh if it weren’t for the fact that Cory’s hopeful naïveté was something that he had grown up with. The Matthews family actually seemed to cultivate it over the years.

“Look at my wife,” he said after a moment, accepting the beer his brother offered with a nod of thanks. “Such a brilliant woman.” 

“Although,” Topanga handed Shawn his wine glass with a curt smile, sitting  in the chair to the other side of the coffee table. “If it’s true, it could be a very smart decision on her part.”

He didn’t even look at her, choosing instead to hold his best friend’s gaze. “She’s an idiot savant!” Cory barked quickly. “What are ya tryin’ to do to me?!” He finally whipped his head around, and Josh could see a full-blown rant bubbling up.

The pillow flew past Josh’s head before he really had time to register that Topanga threw it. “Oh will you calm down?” She all but shouted. Then she turned to Shawn. “She’s a seventeen year old girl who has more or less had to raise herself. Of course there are going to be certain areas that she’s going to want to explore long before any of us are ready for that.” When Shawn opened his mouth to respond, Topanga held up a finger. “And before you get all defensive, Mr. Hunter, do we need to bring up how old you were when you started experimenting sexually?" 

As Shawn started to sputter, Josh raised his hand slightly. “Can we never utter that sentence again? Please?” His brother clutched the pillow to his chest and nodded emphatically.

“My point here is that Maya is a cautious person when it comes to relationships to begin with. She’s only had one relationship that lasted more than a month in her entire high school career.” Briefly Josh was reminded of Kelly, the football player that pretended he was a hipster. Maya had broken up with him shortly before Christmas her freshman year because when pressuring her to sleep with him failed, he decided to take comfort in half the ladies lacrosse team. He’d never been happier to hear that Lucas had been suspended for three days for punching that little asshole out. Apparently Shawn remembered it as well, nodding slowly along with Topanga’s logic. “And she’s not stupid. She knows all about protecting herself and preventing pregnancy.”

Both girls had been given the very same talk when their permission slips were signed and they were on their way to beginning sex ed. Cory had had an impassioned speech about the way things worked, including a very elaborate diagram on how the only things you got out of sex was children, STDs and death. After Topanga had managed to extradite both girls -and no, Josh wasn't going to admit that he eavesdropped on the ever-so-sacred bay window time to learn this- Shawn had managed to get a hold of Maya and have a discussion of his own, including the promise to make her a clinic appointment if she wanted one, and a conversation on condoms (because "you're a stupid kid, but you aren't that stupid"). 

As much as he hated the fact that these were all things that he hadn’t actually thought about before he decided to broach this subject with his best friend, Shawn was kind of glad that Topanga was being logical about the whole situation. “But,” he added with a grumble. “Lucas Friar?”

“And what’s wrong with Lucas?” Topanga poured more wine into both glasses before taking a long sip. “He’s a straight A student, a National Honor Society member, ” at this point Topanga had set her glass down to tick his qualities off on her fingers. “He’s been shortlisted for early acceptance to Cornell, he treats both Maya and Riley like princesses, and he loves his mother.” The last one was said as more of an afterthought, and Josh got a stern look as he snorted. “And you like Lucas.”

“Not if he’s sleeping with Maya.” Shawn pushed himself off of the couch and moved to pace behind it. “He was Riley’s first boyfriend, so we know how this is gonna go if Riley finds out about this.” He shoved a hand into his hair, and for a brief moment, Josh wondered if his parents had ever had discussions like this. “And what happens if they’re not as careful as they think they’re being, or Maya actually falls for him, and he finds someone else?” He stopped abruptly, and suddenly seemed to realize that he was still holding his wine glass. “He’s going to Cornell in the fall, and the only schools Maya’s applied to are here and in Philly! One way or another, she’s going to get hurt.”

“Just because I’m curious,” Josh started slowly, sitting back and watching Topanga smile enigmatically at Shawn and Cory’s mounting excitement. There were a few seconds pause before both men turned to look at him. “Are we righteously disgruntled because Maya’s having sex, or is it because it’s Friar and could end badly?” Topanga’s smile got wider, which seemed to tip him off that he was on the right track. “Because I don’t think it really matters who she’s sleeping with. I don’t think the risk diminishes just because it’s not a friend.”

“You’re on _her_ side!” Cory spat at him, and Josh had to get up from his seat in order to avoid being bashed with the throw pillow. 

Topanga held her hand out for him to move over to her chair, and Josh wasn’t embarrassed to admit that he did as directed. “He has a point.” She shifted in her chair and held her hand up to prevent Cory from trying to hit her. “Choosing someone like Lucas is probably safer for her.”

Shawn had stopped his pacing, looking to Topanga in furious wonder. “No.” He decided quickly. “Not, it’s not.”

“He knows her.” She stood up, this time to reach Shawn on his level. “He understands the way she is, and she feels safe with him. So it makes sense that she would trust him enough with this.” When he turned, Topanga put her hand on his shoulder. “And face it, if you hadn’t found, whatever it is that you found to make you suspicious, you wouldn’t have even known something was happening." 

He didn’t want to admit that she was right. And Shawn absolutely did not want to admit that out loud. “It was a condom wrapper.” He said after a moment. “I came back from Thailand and there was a pair of sweatpants in her dirty laundry that had a condom wrapper in the pocket.” 

Josh watched as Topanga had to resist the urge to point out that she was right, and Maya was being careful.

Shawn sputtered for another minute before launching himself over the couch like a teenager, landing next to his best friend. “I just hate it! Okay?!”

“And you’re allowed.” Topanga set the wine glass she had snagged right before Shawn had gone over the couch on the kitchen table. She dropped herself on the coffee table in front of both men with a frown. “Being a parent is tough. Even if they’re not your kid.”

Josh allowed himself to finally stand and collect the empty beer bottles. “And bright side,” he added, moving to the table. “You’ve done a pretty good job of it so far.”

It was like a light bulb turned on, and two of the three people in the room suddenly remembered that not only was Josh in the room, but he was considerably younger than anyone else. Shawn looked like he was about to apologize for bringing him into his first adult conversation.

“Shawnie?” Cory held his wife’s hands in his as he looked to his best friend. “Needless to say, I’m a little upset.”

Shawn smiled and reached around to clap him on the shoulder. “You’re always upset, Cor.”

Both Matthews nodded, and Cory dropped his head to Shawn’s shoulder. “Well, more than usual.”

 

The front door opened with a shove, and Lucas Friar took two steps in before he had to steady himself, Maya wiggling on his back. “You’ve had entirely too much popcorn, Shortstack,” he grumbled as he readjusted her position before standing upright again. All three adults turned as he pushed himself off from the wall and walked the three feet to the chair before releasing her legs and tilting himself backward so she dropped neatly onto the plush surface. “Next time, you’re walking home.”

“You said that last time.” Maya reminded him, toeing off her ballet flats and sliding to her left so he could perch himself onto the arm of the chair. “And yet, here we are.”

Lucas watched her out of the corner of his eye, oblivious to the stares from three out of the four adults in the room. “That’s because I was raised to be a gentleman.” He scratched the back of his neck even as he turned more fully to her. “I can never resist helping out a damsel in distress.”

It was his Texas twang that got her, more than the traditional tipping of the hat. Maya snorted and turned in the chair, maneuvering herself so her feet were in Lucas’s lap. “If that’s what you need to tell yourself.” She paused then; finally noticing all eyes on her, but didn’t change her position. “You guys said to come home right after.” She grabbed for Lucas’s arm - more specifically his watch, and he didn’t even bother to grumble as she forced his wrist into a position to better see the dial. “It’s not even ten, we can’t be late.”

“You’re not.” Shawn said after a second. “You’re actually earlier than expected.”

“Score one for me.” Maya dropped his arm then, and pulled herself to her feet to rid herself of her jacket. She then promptly dropped herself back into the chair.

Josh chuckled as he resumed his trek to the recycling bin. While he wasn’t about to say it out loud, but now that it had been pointed out, Maya did seem to be more physically comfortable with Lucas than usual. He dropped the bottles, probably louder than he should have, and absently grabbed two bottles of water from the fridge on his way back into the room. “How was the movie?”

“Not bad”

“Could have been worse.”

It only took a second for Josh to notice that Lucas had been far more interested in whatever they’d gone to see than Maya had. But it had been a Friday night with no football, no homework, and no best friend, so when Maya had gotten the invite for a free flick, she hadn’t didn’t mind so much that it wasn’t one of her choice.

“You went to see the new Spiderman movie, didn’t you?” Releasing her husband, Topanga delicately stole the throw pillow he was clutching out of his hands and dropped it back into place beside him. “You didn’t like it?”

Maya and Lucas opened their mouths to speak at the same time. Again. Thankfully the older of the two noticed this and closed his mouth as Maya geared herself up for her answer.

“They’ve had 3 reboots in 15 years.” She grunted, accepting Josh’s offer of water. “And I honestly didn’t think the last one deserved a sequel.” She took a quick sip and then patted Lucas’s leg. “I’m still not sure we needed to see this one. No offense.”

“It wasn’t that bad.” Lucas ruffled her hair as he double-checked his watch, “At least you got free popcorn.”

“I also ate most of your Snowcaps.” No one was surprised that Maya was unashamed.

When he stood, he twisted Maya slightly so he could extradite the arm that had wound up behind her. “On that note,” he readjusted his jacket and bent to bump his chin with Maya’s forehead. “I promised my Mama I would be home by ten thirty.”

“Do you need a ride?” Shawn asked dumbly, moving to his feet. Maya watched Lucas try to shrug him off with a smile. “Or train fare?”

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, and double-checking that Maya hadn’t lifted his wallet, Lucas shook his head. “I’m only going up to Gramercy, sir.” Pulling the wallet out, Lucas pulled his regular Metrocard out from behind his school issued one. “It’s a pretty straight shot.” As an afterthought, he looked over to Maya. “You want me to take you home first?”

“Totally unnecessary, Cowboy.” She looked over to Shawn slowly. “It’s still okay if I crash here, right?”

Topanga’s line from earlier struck Josh then, being a parent was tough. “Your mom say it’s okay?”

Maya nodded, digging her phone out of her pocket. “She’s filming that bit part on the cop pilot.” She huffed slightly. “She told me I was good last week, and I texted to remind her where I was gonna be earlier.”

He wanted to point out that 17-year-old Maya was far more considerate to her parent and/or guardian than he was at her age. Then again, 17-year-old Shawn didn’t really have that many people to be considerate toward. “Then I don’t see why not.” He took a second to look over her outfit. “You have something to wear tomorrow?”

The noise that came out of Maya’s mouth could not be classified as human. “I’m sure I can find something.” Josh could have sworn that he heard Topanga stress that she could handle that part.

“Okay.” Shawn reached for his jacket, and Josh noted that he pulled Cory’s off the hook as well. “I’m taking your husband for a beer.” He told Topanga shortly.

Remembering the conversation Maya had walked in on; Josh fully understood when Topanga waved them off. “Riley has to be at Léman Manhattan Prep at nine,” she reminded both men. “Competition starts at ten.”

“And someone will be buying me coffee between those two times.” Maya interjected helpfully.

“Call me if you decide to crash at Shawn’s.” Topanga kissed her husband gently and then pulled Shawn into a hug. “Everything will be okay.” She whispered to the older man.

Shawn nodded carefully. “Thanks.” When his coat was firmly in place, he leaned down and kissed the top of Maya’s head. “I’ll swing by Everyman on my way in the morning and grab you a Macchiato if you promise not to drive anyone crazy until I get there." 

“I’ll consider it.” Maya returned with a smile. “See ya tomorrow, Shawn.”

“Night kiddo.” He looked across the living room. “Josh.”

The door shut, and Topanga leaned against it with a thump. “Well,” she exclaimed softly. “That was fun.” Both kids raised an eyebrow at her, and she just shrugged. “I have a deposition to earmark before Monday, so I’m actually going to get started on that.” She started to remind Maya that leftovers were in the fridge and that she was allowed to help herself, before remembering exactly who she was speaking to.

“Good night Mrs. Matthews.” Maya slid from the chair to the sofa without actually standing up.

“Good night sweetie.” And then, as an afterthought, “If you feel like just staying here Josh, I’m sure you’ve left something in the guest room that was washed.”

Josh didn’t even have time to assure Topanga that he would manage before she was gone. Grabbing a bag of chips off of the counter, Josh dropped down on the couch beside Maya, not bothering to curse the fact that she had found the remote first.

“So,” she started, flipping past BBCAmerica before returning to it. “What’d you do tonight?”

Josh just smiled. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”


	2. Part II: On Homecoming Dresses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It took a second before Josh stepped up. “I overheard them talking about Homecoming,” he admitted. “And when Maya said she wasn’t going, I kind of goaded her into telling everyone that she didn’t have a dress or a hair appointment.”

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 3,849  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

_Official Disclaimer_ : All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_  and I don't own that either.

* * *

"Aren't you supposed to be going with the head cheerleader or something anyway?"

It was at that specific moment that Josh realized two very important things. The first was that between his classes, internship, and his limited social life, he was spending a surprisingly large amount of time eating out of his brother's fridge. This realization didn't particularly bother him, after all, the less money he had to put onto his dining hall card the better - and sometimes Topanga had even been known to pack him a lunch/dinner for the days he was at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill too long.

The other thing that he noticed was apparently none of Riley's friends ever went home.

Which was why in the middle of a Monday afternoon, Josh got to be privy to Lucas, Riley, Maya and Farkle's plans for whatever school event was coming up next as they worked on homework in various positions around the Matthews' living room.

"No," Lucas said shortly. He tore another page out of his notebook and had to physically resist the urge to launch it across the room at the tiny blonde stretched out on the couch. "Because I'm really not in the mood for our entire class to think that I'm sleeping with Missy Bradford."

The fact that he couldn't have been sleeping with Missy, due in large part to the fact that he was still more or less in a friends-with-benefits situation with her, seemed to be more implied than he would have wanted. Riley peered over the edge of her reading glasses at the two, but otherwise stayed quiet.

Farkle just shook his head.

"You're a little late to that meeting, Sundance." Maya flicked her eraser at him before nudging Riley with her foot so she could be passed a new one. "They already think you've slept with Missy." When Lucas opened his mouth to argue with her, she flicked the newest pencil top eraser at him too. "She's cheer captain, you're the star quarterback, and it was kind of assumed after Missy's first house party."

There was only so much that Lucas could grunt and gesticulate that while there had definitely been some semi-drunken groping, he had most defiantly not slept with Missy.

Not that Maya was paying him a bit of attention as she stayed on her tangent. "But, like most high school seniors in America, with college acceptance letters looming, midterms, and senioritis," she took a breath and Riley just handed her another eraser. "They've already moved on." Breath released, Maya looked back down at her Intro to Calculus textbook and damn near growled. "There's also the overlooked fact that I'm not going to Homecoming," she let slip off-handedly, causing Riley's eyes to bug and physically set down her History workbook down onto the coffee table. "Ergo, I cannot attend said function with you."

Josh couldn't help it. Putting down his sandwich, he actually turned around to look at the teenagers. "You're not going to Homecoming?"

"Oh, sweet baby Jesus, not you too!" Maya slammed her textbook into her forehead a few times before dropping it back into her lap. "It's not really that big of a deal."

So apparently this had been an ongoing thing. Briefly, Josh wondered how long Maya had been trying to put off this conversation. "It's Homecoming," Josh told her shortly. "Your senior year of high school." It actually reminded him to call his mom and see if she could tell him when the Homecoming game at his own school was. He hadn't seen his friends in Philly in entirely too long. "It's kind of a big deal."

Riley pounced, metaphorically speaking of course. "It's a right of passage," she started.

"Don't give me that." Maya snapped her book closed, notebook still inside. "I went last year, remember?" And Riley tried very hard not to flinch. Smackle's grandmother had died the weekend before, so Riley had wound up going with Farkle while Maya had to find a new date. "The only right of passage that I got from that one was my date getting drunk before the dance and me kicking his ass when he decided to grope me in the hallway on my way to the bathroom." Christopher had been an idiot, apologetic after he sobered up, but still an idiot. She had more or less forgiven him; after all, he had volunteered himself for suspension the next morning when he had been told what he had done.

"So you're going to let one bad experience dictate your senior year?" Josh was standing now, and Riley's eyes cut to him quickly. "Are you  _that_  girl?"

And normally that would probably have sealed that she was going. To challenge Maya Hart's mettle was to lose, in most cases. But there was more than one entity at work here. "Even if I was  _that_   _girl_ ," she growled the last part of the sentence, shifting her eyes from friend to friend. She deliberately skipped over Josh, and when her eyes met his, he knew that her revenge would be agonizing. "The dance is in five days, and not only is there no hairdresser on the whole of the island that will be able to fit me in, but I have no dress."

"My mother's hair dresser cleared out her schedule for Smackle's hair on Saturday," Farkle offered helpfully. He palmed his cell phone and sent a quick text to his father. "I don't think she'll have a problem adding one more to her day."

"Hair's settled!" Riley squealed as calmly as possible. Her breathing got continually louder and she tried to hold it in. "Now we get to go shopping for a dress!"

Her eyes rolled, and she wanted to figure out whether or not she could kill Josh with her brain. "No," she growled at her best friend. "We don't." She took a deep breath before shaking her head. "There's not exactly enough money in the Hart family slush fund for that kind of thing."

And suddenly Josh realized why he was such an ass. "Maya –"

"It's fine," she snapped.

Riley's face fell as she turned her entire attention to her best friend. "I thought things were better?"

"They are." Her mom's acting career had finally jump started, and been going rather decently. She was appearing on Off-Broadway stages more often than naught, and she had been in two more television shows since her bit part on the pilot she filmed at the beginning of the school year. And both she and her mother appreciated the fact that Katy was bringing home a steady paycheck doing it. The hours were hell though, and she had recently received a tentative offer from the traveling Aquila Theatre Company with a part in their production of Wuthering Heights. There were times when Maya felt like they may have moved forward, but they had also gone backward as well. "But 'yay we can pay our bills' money isn't quiet the same as 'let's buy Maya a new Homecoming dress' money."

Maya was trying very hard not to remind her friends that the only reason she had three formal dresses in her closet were because Shawn hadn't stopped offering his credit card up for frivolities. Which is why when he was sent over to Rome on a freelance job last month and hadn't been back, she didn't hesitate to bury all thoughts of Homecoming. She was honestly just planning on asking Topanga if she could pick up an extra shift at the café while everyone else was out.

"I've got a few things you might fit in," Riley offered up helpfully, pulling herself to her feet.

"We haven't shared more than tops in years, Riley." Maya dropped her book on the coffee table so she could reach her hand out to her friend. "There is no way that my five foot two frame is gonna fit in anything in your closet." And as much as she hated to say it, it was true. Throughout her entire high school career, Maya had only been able to add two and a half inches to her frame, while Riley had shot up to nearly six feet.

"You're right," Riley didn't sit back down, though. Instead, she moved closer to the edge of the couch. She looked to her uncle, who had started this whole mess, before taking a deep breath. "I cannot fix this." Maya was reaching for her textbook again, about to commend her best friend for her admission, when Riley let out a garish squeal. "Mommy!"

Homework completely abandoned now, Maya cursed as she leaped over the arm of the couch to clamp her hand on Riley's mouth. "What the hell, Riles?" It seemed that she had gotten to her too late. The door to Topanga's office opened and closed, and Josh watched as understanding blossomed over Maya's face. "Fuck," the blonde murmured, taking her hand away from her best friend. She took a step back and shook her head. "Really?"

"What's going on out here?" Topanga got a good look around the room and folded her arms against her chest. Josh was sitting at the kitchen table, his Urban Society textbook flipped open and a half eaten sandwich sitting on top of it. Sharing the table, and she used that term loosely, was Farkle. He had somehow managed to strew the contents of his messenger bag across most of the table, iPad included. Lucas had taken the chair on the far side of the room,  _Steppenwolf_  hanging loosely from his fingers, and a highlighter between his teeth. It was pretty clear that Riley and Maya had been sharing the couch and coffee table, how exactly wasn't entirely clear, and both children were now standing in the open space between the couch and the table, Maya's hand still hanging in the air next to Riley's face. While it appeared to be a normal, it also meant there was no telling what could be wrong.

Riley looked from her mother to her best friend and then back again. "No," Maya growled at her best friend. " _Please_  leave it alone."

Topanga looked around the room again. "Honey, what's wrong."

Another deep breath and Riley just broke. "Lucas just asked Maya to go to Homecoming with him, and at first she just said no. But he was persistent and kept asking. And when she finally said that she wasn't going to Homecoming because she didn't have a ticket; but Lucas has two so it's not an issue. And again today, Lucas asked again. Maya said she still wasn't going, and Josh asked why not. It took a little while, and a lot of nudging before Maya finally told us that it was because she wasn't able to get a new dress, and she doesn't have many other dresses. And I can't fix that." There was a pause before she took another breath and turned fully to her mother. "Can you please help me fix that Mommy?"

"And all in one breath, too." Maya announced, dropping her hand in defeat before turning back to the couch.

Taking a step away from Riley, Topanga shook her head. "Okay…" She let the word hang before turning back to the room. "Can someone who is not my daughter give me the abridged version?"

It took a second before Josh stepped up. "I overheard them talking about Homecoming," he admitted. "And when Maya said she wasn't going, I kind of goaded her into telling everyone that she didn't have a dress or a hair appointment."

"So I offered up my mom's stylist," Farkle cut in.

Lucas dropped the highlighter from his mouth, "and Riley offered to go shopping with her-"

"Which led to Maya trying so very hard not to admit that the reason she doesn't have a dress is because it wasn't in the budget." Maya was desperately trying to hide her face in her book now, and Josh moved closer to the living room and nodded in her direction.

Topanga nodded slowly, never taking her eyes off of the blonde on the couch. "I see." And she did. The Matthews family had been helping Maya battle this particular stigma for as long as they had been aware of it. It had included everything from lunch and field trip money, to purchasing an extra plane ticket, so Maya could summer in Philly with Riley. Maya'd started to pay more attention to it over the last few years, deliberately not telling them about opportunities that she had that may require financial backing. Not that that had stopped them. It had actually gotten easier since Shawn had officially moved to town, slipping extra cash into Maya's wallet, replenishing art supplies, and sometimes just handing Maya one of his credit cards for special occasions. "And you didn't want her to tell me because…"

"Because it's not a big deal." With a huff and a thud, Maya threw her book back onto the coffee table. She had officially given up on studying for the evening. Her homework for the day was finished – thank you Riley for asking her to walk her home after a Homecoming Committee meeting – and at this point she was sure she wasn't going to get anything else done anyway. "It's just a dance." She watched as Josh and Riley opened their mouths at the same time. "Don't you two  _even_  start."

Yeah, this was going to be more difficult than Topanga though. "Okay," she started, clapping her hands. "Here's how we're gonna solve this one." Everyone in the room held their breath while Maya rolled her eyes. First she turned to Josh. "What's your schedule like tomorrow afternoon?"

"My last class ends at four thirty, so I don't have to go to the office." He could already see the gears in his sister-in-law's head turning. "Whatcha need?"

"Auggie has Lego Club after school, do you think you could pick him up and bring him back here? Cor -"

Josh didn't even wait for her to finish her thought. "Definitely not a problem."

"What will you be doing Mommy?" Riley's eyes were wide.

"I will be taking Maya shopping." Topanga tone brooked no room for an argument.

It was a shame that the person they were talking about was still in the room. "No, you're not." Maya said quickly. "I'm supposed to be working tomorrow." She crossed her arms against her chest.

It was like she was arguing with Shawn, Topanga decided. She was officially arguing with 17-year-old Shawn Hunter all over again. The benefit of doing it at 36 was the added experience of already knowing the arguments that he had brooked over the years, and being able to preempt them.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket, flipping through her contacts quickly before putting her phone to her ear. "Marcy? Hi! It's Topanga." She was looking directly at Maya now, daring her to say something. "Something's come up with Maya, and I was wondering if you would be okay taking her shift tomorrow?" Her lips quirked up, and she batted her eyes at the teen. "Oh, that is perfectly fine! You are more than welcome to bring Stewie. He can sit at the counter, and his afterschool snacks are on me. Thank you so much. Buh-Bye!"

Maya cursed again as Topanga clapped her phone between her hands. "Who needs a paycheck anyway?" She muttered to herself.

"Good." Tucking her phone back in her pocket, Topanga braced herself fro her daughter's hug. "I'll meet you at  _Topanga's_  at 4, and we'll go from there." Turning on her heel, before Maya could come up with another excuse as to why she was suddenly unavailable.

"Fine, I'm going to the damn dance!" Maya shoved her books into her bag and stood. "Are you losers happy?"

While Riley was practically vibrating with excitement – the look on Maya's face the only reason she probably hadn't started squealing already – the rest of the group suddenly seemed apprehensive to Josh. He watched Maya check her phone before hoisting her bag onto her shoulder.

"No," she took one step forward, just as Maya took one step back. "Maya, don't be like this?"

"Like what?" The blonde didn't bother with her jacket, slinging it over her arm as she headed to the door. "I just remembered that I have to finish that project for Jacobs tonight."

As she was the only one that took any form of art, she very well could have forgotten a project. That was, until someone saw the look on her face as she was leaving. Josh knew that he could definitely make it to her before she made it to the street. Whether to apologize, or just to make sure she was okay, he wasn't entirely sure. But he hopped off the step to the kitchen just as the front door shut, Maya on the other side and Riley crossed her arms against her chest protectively.

"Lucas!" She whined, and Josh knew tears were next.

The tall blonde was out of his seat before Riley finished his name, throwing his book and highlighter in the general direction of the couch and sprinting out the door. This time, it was left wide open.

"Shortstack!" Josh heard Lucas call down the hall, trying so very hard not to follow Riley to the door jam to eavesdrop. Farkle had promptly decided that with Lucas chasing Maya, he was now free to return to his homework.

She was faster than they thought, and Riley closed the front door just to race over to the bay window slam open the lower sash, leaning as far out as she thought propriety demanded of her. Curiosity getting the best of him, Josh grabbed his sandwich and followed her lead.

Down on the street, they stood toe to toe, almost. Lucas had successfully gotten Maya's bag from her shoulder and had wrapped it around his own torso in an attempt to keep her for fighting for it. Mayas arms were wrapped around herself, jacket still not on, and Josh couldn't figure out if it was to protect herself from the cold or Lucas.

While neither one of them could hear what Lucas said, Maya wasn't nearly as quiet. "She's  _always_ trying to help." She shouted from the street. "Even when I tell her not to." She paused, following the trajectory of a cab with her gaze. "Even when I  _beg_  her not to."

"And you love her for it."

Sometime over the course of her life, Riley had learned to read lips. Josh looked from the scene on the street to his niece and smiled when she laughed nervously. "Maya taught me," she whispered sheepishly.

"I don't love the way it makes me feel!" Maya's voice has risen again, and Lucas had to grab her arm to keep her on the sidewalk. "I'm tired of the fact that I'm always the effing charity case with you people! Just once, if I can't afford something, I'd like to be able to skip it."

"No." Lucas's hand shifted from her arm to cup her face, and Josh could see Maya's breath physically catch.

It wasn't romantic, not in the way that he had seen his brother and sister-in-law, or even Shawn and Katy before they had decided that distance made it too hard and friendship was easier. While his finger brushed the hair from her eyes, Lucas didn't make any other advancement. It was clear that any physical relationship they had had a time and a place, and neither of those were right here right now.

"You talk a good game, Maya, but it sucks just as much for you to stay home as it does for us." Maya rolled her eyes at that, and Lucas didn't seem to care. "And we don't do this because it's charity." When Maya's mouth opened, Lucas's thumb dropped down onto her lips. "We do it because spending time with you makes us happy, and we're okay paying for the privilege."

"I'm fairly certain that somewhere in that sentence you just compared me with a hooker."

Josh couldn't help the snort that came out of his nose, or that half a second later he coughed from trying not to gag on his sandwich. A quick glance to his niece said that she wasn't fairing much better, hovering somewhere between blind panic for hurting her best friends feelings, and glee at the fact that she was actually being open about said feelings.

" _That's_  what you took from that?" Lucas was laughing below them, and Maya's lip quirked in her own attempt not to. "I'm telling you that we adore so you so much that we're all willing to empty our bank accounts so you can be included, and you're talking about hookers?"

"You left a twenty on my nightstand Thursday night." Maya reminded him. A quick look to Riley told Josh that she was already aware of that fact.

He deserved that one. The way Lucas dropped his chin told them that. "And a ticket to the football game." He reminded her.

"Okay," Maya locked eyes with him and tilted her head. "You left the equivalent of twenty-eight dollars on my nightstand Thursday night," She amended.

"And anytime you want to say 'thank you' for that," Lucas dropped his knees slightly, to be more at her level. "I am more than happy to hear it."

Maya's entire body deflated, and Josh noted that Lucas's gaze never shifted. "I'm being unreasonable, aren't I?"

"I wouldn't go that far." That had come from Riley, as Lucas's voice was apparently too low for him to hear. "You're allowed to be proud," he poked her on the nose, and Maya twitched. "Just stop being so stubborn about it."

Another beat and Maya bounced up on her tiptoes to kiss Lucas's cheek. "Thanks, Cowboy." She pulled her cell from her pocket to check the time. "Now hand over my bag. I'm still going home."

"You don't have to" Lucas said the same time Riley let out a whine that somehow also contained the word 'no.'

Maya nodded, and Lucas stooped again while she relieved him of her bag. "I do actually have to finish my art project, and my stuff's at Shawn's."

In an effort to calm herself, Riley had turned her body back to face the living room, and Josh wasn't sure he was relieved or not when Lucas kissed Maya's forehead. "You want some company later?"

It wasn't suggestive in any way shape or form, but Maya's entire body tensed again. "Only if 'company' includes explanations on multivariable, and falafel."

Lucas kissed her again and nodded. "I think I can manage that." He checked his watch before taking a step back. "Text Riley on your way home," he ordered. "I can reassure her all I'd like, but she won't calm down –"

"Until she hears from me," Maya finished. "Yes, sir."

Deciding that the crisis had been averted, Josh pulled himself from the window seat and headed back to the kitchen table. Riley still hadn't moved.

Lucas slipped through the front door quietly, retrieved his book, and dropped onto the couch where Maya had been sitting. "Since Maya's going shopping with your mom tomorrow," if Lucas had startled Riley, she didn't show it. "Do you want me to walk you home?"

Josh watched in rapt fascination as Riley's entire being seemed to come to life again. "Only if you don't mind."

From his place at the table, Farkle shook his head again.


	3. [Interlude] Dress Shopping with Maya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “It wasn’t until they were back on the street, headed back to the subway that Maya actually physically stopped. “You didn’t have to do this Mrs. Matthews.” It wasn’t so much in what she said, but how she said it that Topanga noticed. Her bravado was gone. She was genuinely grateful that she had someone in her life that took time to make sure she had what she wanted. “Seriously. I mean, I know you guys still pay for my cell phone. You didn’t have to add homecoming dresses to it too.”

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment’s Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 3,177  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial. 

_Official Disclaimer_ : All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song _Sooner or Later_ and I don’t own that either.

* * *

Promptly at 4, Maya slid into Topanga’s, hoping to scarf down a scone before the woman herself arrived. The door barely closed behind her before she realized that she had set her expectations too high.

Topanga didn’t even wait for her to loosen her scarf, handing her a cardboard cup and turning her back towards the door. Maya wasn’t surprised that the older woman was giving her outfit a good once-over either. When she’d called Riley the night before to apologize for her behavior, it was helpfully suggested that she at least pretend to take the excursion seriously, regardless of whether or not she actually did. So she had planned an outfit that not only covered the bases as far as school dress code, Maya code – which was considerably more important – and made it easier to get in and out of in changing rooms. It was her gift to her best friend’s mother, whether she wanted to admit it or not.

She would have been amazed to admit that it wasn’t her choice of wardrobe that Topanga was smiling at, but rather that she suddenly realized that while best friends, Riley and Maya were day and night, and what was considered an exciting excursion for one, might not be the same for the other. There was also the fact that she realized that in her skinny jeans, loose-fitting shrug-on cardigan, and plain white v-neck – that she accented with bangles and layers of delicate necklaces, Maya suddenly looked every bit the adult that she had been projecting for the bulk of her life.

“Shall we?” Topanga held the door and pointed to the end of the street where the subway sign peeked over the edge of a sign for a bookstore.

Maya readjusted her grip on her cup, bumped her sunglasses back onto the bridge of her nose and shrugged at her companion. She had promised Riley and Lucas that she would behave on this trip. She was going to do her best to honor that.

Originally, Maya had figured that they were on their way to the Demolition, or at the very most down to the mall. Her plan had been simple, get in, find something that fit her – preferably in black – with the smallest price tag as possible, and the get out. No muss, no fuss, and they would be back at the Matthew’s house in time for Riley to regale her with tales of cheerleading practice while Topanga made dinner. When she was shuffled from one train to the other in Union Square, she had begun to realize that she might have misjudged the situation.

They continued to make small talk even as she was nudged toward the train door when it stopped at the 23rd Street station. Then it seemed like a switch had been flipped, and Topanga was suddenly a woman on a mission.

“So what kind of dress were you thinking about?” She asked slowly, linking her arm with the teenager and steering her down Broadway towards 22nd Street. “Are we looking for long, short, strappy, sleeveless?”

Maya tried very hard not to falter. “I hadn’t really thought about it,” she admitted carefully. She and Riley may have pored over magazines in the last month trying to come up with a look for the younger of the two, Maya hadn’t really paid attention to what she found interesting.

Topanga nodded knowingly, but didn’t break her stride. “Okay,’ Maya seemed to gain a little more of her confidence. “Well, I know you prefer the darker colors, so we can go ahead and eliminate pastels, or anything white.”

Again, Maya’s smile dropped. Topanga knew her, that wasn’t anything shocking; it was that she was able to separate Maya’s style from what she might have wanted to put her in. Even Katy wasn’t fully able to not project herself on her daughter sometimes.

Whelp, her original plan had just been dropped onto the sidewalk and left to rot.

“Riley kept suggesting green,” she added somewhat helpfully.

“You don’t seem married to that idea?”

Maya shrugged, “I honestly have no idea what I want.” They turned onto 20th Street, Topanga steering her with a bump to the hip or a tug on her arm. “I didn’t think I was going, so why come up with an outfit.”

There was another nod before Topanga smiled.

They made it another few dozen feet before Topanga pulled Maya up short and turned her slightly. If she hadn’t known exactly what they were there for, she would have completely missed the second-floor display. Wedged between a FedEx store, and the New York Public Library, sitting right on top of a frame atelier, was the cozy little shop with formal wear in its display window.

“Kinda small, isn’t it?” Maya said without thinking, still looking up.

It was Topanga’s turn to shrug. “Something tells me ‘small’ is the kind of store you need.” Pointing to the door to the side of the atelier display windows, she gave Maya a tiny push. “Come on.”

While it was true that the place was small, Maya didn’t hesitate to add eclectic to the description. The gowns in the window were definitely high priced evening wear, but the second she made it up the stairs, she had to avoid walking right into a mannequin in a sparkly pantsuit arm and arm with one in a slinky cocktail dress. The room was an explosion of color, with racks everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Lounges and couches were interspersed throughout the room, with a random chair or two, and the dressing rooms were hidden behind a curtain in the back of the building.

“Topanga!” An older woman, and by that Maya meant someone who was probably closer to Grandma Matthews age, practically raced from behind the counter to greet them, pulling Topanga into a side hug and kissing her cheek. “Chrissy said you’d be in today.”

Dropping Maya’s arm, Topanga hugged the woman back. “I know we’re early.”

“Nonsense,” she waved off another employee coming over to offer help. “I would fit you in even if you didn’t have an appointment.” Peering over horn-rimmed glasses at Maya, the woman smiled. “What are we looking for today? And don’t tell me this is Riley?”

Maya’s eyes bugged, and Topanga placed a hand on her back. “This is Riley’s best friend Maya.” She answered confidently, watching as the woman’s smile seemed to grow. Neither one of them noticed at all that Maya was trying to remember to breathe. Topanga had taken her to a shop that she was clearly familiar with. Somewhere Riley had never been. “And we are in desperate need of a Homecoming dress.”

“Hello Maya!” Patting her on the back, in lieu of a hug, the woman brought her other arm up to her chest. “I’m Clara.” When she didn’t seem to relax, Clara looked to Topanga. Maya would have to admit that she didn’t pay attention to the look between the two ladies, but startled when Clara’s smile never wavered, and she removed her hand. “Why don’t you take a look around and see if anything jumps out at you?”

With one ear on Topanga and her friend, she allowed herself to slowly move to the racks along the walls.

“Any idea what we’re looking for?” Clara asked her best friend’s mother delicately.

Topanga moved over to the one of the chairs and set her purse down. “Only slightly,” she admitted. “No pastels, no white, and nothing ‘frilly.’”

She took it in carefully, assessing Maya’s outfit and trying to gauge what colors she should start out with since she now had a set of parameters to work with.

Topanga waited until Maya was examining the mannequin in the back before stepping closer to her friend. “And nothing that goes into the dressing room with her needs to have a price tag on it.”

While she couldn’t hear what Topanga said, the look that Clara shot her, and the way she nodded carefully was not lost on Maya. “Of course.” Then as if touched by a live wire, Clara darted across the room, reaching for a rack behind the counter. “What’s your favorite color, Maya?”

As an artist, questions like that offended her. How was she supposed to pick just one in the cacophony that she worked with on a daily basis? How was she supposed to pick the blush that reminded her of Riley over the arctic blue of Lucas’s eyes? Why did there have to be a contest between the warm raw amber that still drew her to want to run her finger’s through Josh’s hair, and the comforting emerald of the afghan that her Grammy had made her before she passed?

As a teenaged girl, her views on color were somewhat different. Growing up, she had learned that a person’s favorite color said a lot about them. Naturally Riley’s was pink, peppy and bubblegum sweet. Farkle was green, a color that symbolized power, and world domination. Lucas seemed to change his every year, which, considering his revolving door of sports and activities, didn’t surprise her much. Maya had never declared a favorite color, trying very hard not to label herself any more differently than her best friend if she could help it. But she gravitated more toward the bolder colors that life provided.

“I like red,” she said noncommittally, after a moment. “And green.” The last one was hastily added, more because Riley had suggested it, and she wanted to be able to tell her best friend that she’d at least tried.

Taking a mental note of that, Clara held up a tape measure. “Would you mind if I measured you?” She was kind, and not at all what shopkeepers of boutiques in Manhattan were supposed to be in Maya’s opinion. “Some of the sizes aren’t standard, and I don’t want to stick you in the dressing room with something that is definitely too big, or too small.”

Maya dropped her purse down next to Topanga’s suddenly really glad that she had finished all of her homework in study hall and hadn’t needed to bring her messenger bag home with her. “If that’s what you need to do,” she shrugged out of her cardigan and readjusted her shirt.

She’d actually been fitted for one dress in her entire life. When she was eleven, and Alan and Amy renewed their vows for their 40th wedding anniversary. Amazingly enough being measured hadn’t changed at all in six years. Maya raised her arms when told, took a deep breath in, and made sure to stand up tall, and in the end, Clara declared that she had one or two dresses to start her off with – ‘just to help you define what you like and what you don’t’ – before pointing her off into the direction of the dressing rooms.

“Keep your shoes off!” Topanga instructed her as she was shuffled to the back.

Maya groaned as Clara handed her a simple green sheath dress to try on first. ‘But I’m short!” She called through the tapestry that served as a door to her cubby.

There was a laugh, which sounded a little too much like Riley for her comfort, before Topanga’s voice was much closer. “It’ll take less time that way,” she instructed her.

“If you need some ‘lift,’ we’ve got a pair of slides or two you can try.” Clara supplied helpfully, sliding a few more gowns onto the rack beside Maya’s curtain.

“I also don’t think brown suede fringe will go with what we’re looking for.” The noise that came from the back of Maya’s throat sounded a lot like ‘why not?’ and Topanga shook her head, pointing to a shorter Sherri Hill near the window.

More shuffling, and Clara and Topanga shared a look. “You okay in there, Maya?” Clara checked the tag on the dress Topanga had pointed toward, and then pulled the safety pin off.

“Yup.” The curtain shifted, and Maya emerged, shaking her head. “I’m not a fan of this one.”

Topanga followed slowly. “It is a little plain,” she agreed.

“But we now have a jumping off point.” Gown folded over her arm, Clara appeared beside her. “What do you like about this dress?”

“The length.” It was the first thing that popped into Maya’s head, and she smiled. As much as she hated Riley’s love for jogging Central Park on the weekends, looking at her toned calves peeking out from the bottom of the fitted skirt suddenly made it not so bad. Not to mention, “Add some heels and my leg’s won’t look so short.”

Both of the older women laughed at that, and Topanga slid out of her shoes and handed them to Maya. “What don’t you like about it?”

Gaining four inches always made Maya feel better about herself. “It’s so tight,” she tugged at the skirt just a little, and then ran a hand down her front. “And I’m not crazy about the light green.”

“No more light green,” Clara helped unzip her before pointing her back to the dressing rooms. “Got it.” She followed Maya back while Topanga just dropped herself onto a couch. “Let’s see what else we’ve got.”

It took Maya another forty-five minutes to veto the color green completely. It didn’t matter if the emerald brought out the highlights in her hair, or if the sound of hunter green made her giggle. Next went gold, and she had to say that she was kind of sad to see that go.  Topanga was the one to suggest the chiffon skirt to add some bounce to the dress, and Clara had helped her see the benefits of a fitted bodice. Half an hour after that, she was more than ready to just grab the first dress she could get her hands on just so she could stop trying on dresses.

The second she pulled on the high neck, sleeveless cocktail dress, she knew it was the one. Maya wasn’t sure if it was the playful feeling she got from the fact that her front what almost entirely covered with the most intricate beaded design she had ever seen and yet the back had a keyhole opening which left the bulk of her spine exposed, or that the skirt was just long enough to be appropriate for a school dance, but it spun out when she twirled.

When she stepped out of the dressing room, still in Topanga’s borrowed heels, both of the older women whistled.

“This is my dress,” she said after a moment, spinning herself in front of the full-length mirror.

Even if she had thought to argue with her, Topanga took one look at the smile on Maya’s face and whole-heartedly agreed. “This is your dress,” wrapping her arms around Maya’s shoulders, she propped her chin the best she could on the younger woman’s shoulder. “This is most definitely your dress.”

Topanga reached for her phone slowly, trying not jostle Maya too much. It didn’t matter that the girl was so engrossed in the mirror to notice. She thumbed the lock screen and then handed it to Clara, using her hand to ask if she would mind taking a photo. When the phone was dropped back into her hand, she released Maya, thumbing through the few that were taken before finding her favorite and messaging it to Cory and Shawn simultaneously.

Six-hour time difference be damned, Shawn’s reply came almost as soon as she hit send. **You did good**. Topanga read it twice, hearing his tired pride in the back of her head.

“As much as I hate to say this,” taking a step back, Topanga popped Maya on the rear. “Go get back into your regular clothes.” Maya pouted but nodded, stepping out of the heels before trudging back into the dressing room. When the curtain slid shut for the last time, she turned back to Clara. “Thank you.”

“This is what we do honey.” She moved quickly to grab the dress right as Maya put it on the rack and then moved over to the register. “I’m assuming you don’t want her to know the total cost of this?”

Topanga grabbed her purse just as quickly, moving to follow her. “How’d you guess?” She laughed, pulling out her wallet and allowing her purse to drop onto the counter.

The process hadn’t been as painful as she thought it would be, Maya admitted while she pulled her jeans back on. She had a pair of strappy red heels in her closet at home, and she was fairly certain that Riley would loan her the chunky gold bracelet that was in her jewelry box. Lucas had already been told that if he showed up with a corsage, she was most likely going to deck him, so there was really nothing else she needed to worry about.

It didn’t escape her notice that for once, dress shopping hadn’t been the most horrible thing on the planet.

Or that none of the dresses she tried on that day actually had tags on them.

Shrugging back into her cardigan, Maya pushed her way past the curtain just as Topanga was signing the card reader. “You ready kiddo?”

She took the garment bag from Clara and walked over to grab her own purse, before looking around slowly. “Yeah,” she said after a moment. “Thanks, Clara.”

“Anytime Maya,” the older woman couldn’t resist her urge to hug the younger girl any longer, and Maya actually didn’t mind so much. “I’m looking forward to Prom season with you.”

There was a laugh, and Topanga laced her arm through Maya’s. “I’ll call you next week about the firm’s Christmas party.”

It wasn’t until they were back on the street, headed back to the subway that Maya actually physically stopped. “You didn’t have to do this Mrs. Matthews.” It wasn’t so much in what she said, but how she said it that Topanga noticed. Her bravado was gone. She was genuinely grateful that she had someone in her life that took the time to make sure she had what she wanted. “Seriously. I mean, I know you guys still pay for my cell phone. You didn’t have to add homecoming dresses to it too.”

“It’s a family plan,” Topanga shrugged off casually. “You’re just extra family.”

It was corny, and if Maya was right, it was also a joke that Auggie had made a few years ago when talking about a family game night, but it was such as Matthews thing to say that she couldn’t help wrapping her arms around the older woman. “I mean it, thank you.”

“You’re welcome sweetie,” wrapping her arms around Maya, Topanga kissed her on the forehead. “And I mean it to.” When Maya pulled back, Topanga poked her nose. “You and Riley have been joined at the hip since preschool. You’re family.” She joined their arms again and bumped their hips as she began walking. “And you know what?”

“What?”

“I’m kind of looking forward to Prom season with you, too.” 

 


	4. Part II - Homecoming for Dummies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Ain’t no rest for the wicked.” Maya tossed the cap to her drink into the trash on her way past. “The princess needs her glass slipper, and I have to find six inches before the horde descends.” She didn’t wait for him to respond, skirting her way up the stairs with a twitch of her hip.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment’s Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 4,549  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial. 

 _Official Disclaimer_ : All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don’t own that either.

* * *

 

It was a Saturday night in New York City.

So naturally Josh was spending it in his brother’s living room, beating his nephew at Call of Duty. He’d spent the morning in his cubicle at Skidmore Owings & Merrill, being every bit the good little intern in hopes that the job offer that his managing director had told him about at the beginning of the internship would be his after he graduated. After that he’d done some reading on a lecture he would be attending Monday, played pool at the student union with his roommate and a few of their friends, and then he’d gotten the call from Cory to pick Auggie up at Dewy’s. Apparently Riley’s hair appointment had run late, and Topanga promised Maya that she would get her at the Minkus household and they would take a cab back to the house so she could get ready with Riley.

Too much consideration went into girl’s side of school dances.

Josh was suddenly very glad that he had been far too young to actually notice Morgan going through this stuff.

He didn’t hear the front door open, which could have had something to do with the One Direction blaring from the floor above him. He took a quick shot of his soda, shaking his head at the fact that he not only recognized the band but also probably knew the lyrics. His brother scurried past with a bag from the drug store down the road, shuffling to the stairs. Josh couldn’t remember what errand he had been sent on, but he was fairly certain that it had had something to do with hairspray.

Maya and Topanga had arrived forty-five minutes ago; with so little fanfare that had Auggie not announced that she looked like the anti-Maya he wouldn’t have even noticed. Cory had shuffled Topanga into Riley’s room quickly though. Apparently there had been a slight mascara incident that required his sister-in-law’s attention.

“Dude!” The controller dropped out of his hand even as he had to bite back a curse. “Do I have to literally pay you to keep you from spawn camping my ass?” Well, Josh  _had_  been winning. He would have been proud if it weren’t for the fact that Auggie was using the tactic on  _him_.

“You can’t be good at everything.”

The look on the nine-year-olds face was almost comical, and Josh grabbed the controller to try again. He took a deep breath, “You’ve been spending too much time with Ava.” He decided shortly.

“Leave my woman out of this.”

He opened his mouth to snap back when a giggle distracted him. Turning slightly on the couch, Josh nodded appreciatingly at the girl-woman in front of him. “Bold choice.” Maya laughed again and nodded down to her running shorts and zip-up hoodie.

“This is what happens when you leave dress shopping to the last minute.” She hopped over to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of green tea, shaking it a bit before popping the top. Grabbing a straw from the drawer next to the sink, Maya dropped it in before taking her first sip, presumably to save that deep pink on her lips from rubbing off.

“At least your hair looks great.” Maya bit the inside of her lip at the compliment, and Josh could see the blush rise through her makeup. He had the added benefit of not lying.

While he had been privy to his niece and her best friend getting ready for dances for almost as long as they had been going to them, it never ceased to amaze him of the many styles that Maya twisted and pinned her golden locks into. Tonight’s was a cacophony of curls and intricate braids that left half of her hair pulled up and the rest cascading down her back. She’d already put her earrings in, twin torrents of garnet and gold that tangled in her hair and brushed her jaw.

Her eyes swept down and Maya tried not to choke on the sip of her drink. “Thanks,” she said sheepishly.

“Maya!!!” Riley’s voice cut through the sound of Auggie killing him one more time, and Josh realized that he was definitely off his game. “They’ll be here any minute and I can’t get my shoes on!”

“Ain’t no rest for the wicked.” Maya tossed the cap to her drink into the trash on her way past. “The princess needs her glass slipper, and I have to find six inches before the horde descends.” She didn’t wait for him to respond, skirting her way up the stairs with a twitch of her hip.

“Put some pants on!”

That order had come from the other side of the room, and Josh almost fell off the couch trying to swivel his head to see Shawn hanging his jacket on the coat rack, without dropping his camera satchel. He set it on the chair to his left and then shook his head.

“I know for a fact that the kid owns actual clothes,” he muttered to himself, followed faintly by what Josh could have sworn sounded like ‘she spends enough of my money to get them.’

There was a pause, and a thud and Maya was flinging herself back down the stairs. “Shawn!”

“Hey, kiddo.” He was careful when wrapping his arms around her, making sure not to flatten her hair, or squeeze her to him too tightly as to ruin her make-up. “First dance of your last year in high school,” he kissed her forehead. “Did you honestly think I would spend it in a hotel room halfway across the world?””

Her smile brighter than Josh had seen it all week; Maya forced herself to roll her eyes to hide her excitement. He didn’t want to point out that she was failing. Miserably. “I guess this means I can’t take my date back to your place after the after party.”

When Shawn’s jaw clenched. Maya may not have known about that particular conversation, but her sex life was still a point of contention with Shawn. “You can always get a hotel room, like normal high schoolers,” he added not so helpfully, lying back onto the arm of the couch to avoid being smacked by the older man. “Friar can probably afford it.”

“You two are so very funny.” Popping Josh on the back of the head with his satchel as he slid past, Shawn rolled his eyes at the pair. “Shouldn’t you be getting dressed?” He asked ass he checked his watch. “It’s almost six.”

“After all the trouble they went through to get me to this damn thing,” Maya was moving to the stairs anyway. “Do you actually think they’ll leave without me?”

“I still say you go as you are.” Josh sat up straight again, watching Shawn cut his eyes to him quickly. “Could start a new trend.”

Cory didn’t seem at all surprised to enter his kitchen and find Shawn sitting on the bench. “With as much as Topanga spent on your dress,” he made sure Maya saw his smile as he spoke. “If you don’t leave with it on your body tonight, someone’s sleeping on the couch.”

“And you don’t really want to set Cory up for something like that, do you?”

“He’s an old man,” Shawn cut Josh off with a smirk. “And he’s got a bad back.”

“My shoe doesn’t fit!”

Maya giggled as she finished her trek to the stairs. “That’s because it’s probably mine!” She shouted back, tipping an imaginary hat toward the men. “We now return to our regularly scheduled programming.”

“There are days I forget she’s not mine.” Shawn said after a moment, watching Maya disappear around the corner. Josh watched as he shook his head, pulling his camera from his bag.

Cory joined his best friend on the bench, crossing his legs at his ankles. “She does that have a distinct Hunter spirit about her.” He agreed slowly. “How long ya here for?”

“Just long enough to make sure my apartment’s still standing, and to maybe take Maya out to dinner tomorrow.” There had been storms rolling in when he had asked to postpone his next shoot for a few days, which had aided his request. “I’ve got to be back on a plane Monday night.” He’d told his editor that his daughter had her first senior dance at school, and her mother had a performance that she couldn’t miss. He supposed he was only half lying.

A buzz broke through the silence, and Auggie dropped his controller to hop over to the intercom. “Whataya want?” He dropped his voice in a goofy imitation of his father’s.

“To pillage, burn and steal your daughters.” It may have been Farkle that spoke, but it was Lucas that coughed nervously.

Turning back to the men at the table, Auggie took in his father’s nervous grin and Shawn’s apparent agitation. “Come on up.” He decided, hitting the button to unlock the gate.

“You realize she’s gonna be 18 in January, right?” Josh hopped off the couch to grab another drink

“You’d like to live to be able to legally drink, right?” Shawn countered, leveling his camera lens at him before pressing the button.

Grabbing the soda bottle, he used the same hand in mock salute. “Shutting up now, sir.”

The front door picked that time to open, and five teenagers shuffled through slowly, Farkle at the lead, and Lucas bringing up the rear. “This is a very nice looking group of well-dressed young people.” Cory stood quickly, walking across the room to survey them more carefully. Regardless of the threat made to him just a moment ago, Shawn shared a look with Josh that may have actually contained the words ‘old man’ when referring to Cory.

Closing the door behind Smackle, who was carefully clutching Farkle’s arm, Lucas slid out of his overcoat, readjusting his tie. Josh had to give it to the boy. While they had all agree that there would be no tuxedoes for this excursion – saving that for prom – Lucas had definitely gone all out with an obviously tailored three-piece suit, a perfect mix of black and grey, except for the jewel-colored pocket square. If Josh were to make a guess, he would say that it most likely matched Maya’s dress perfectly. Farkle wore a similar suit, the legs slim fit and his vest and jacket matching Smackle’s deep purple gown. He also went sans tie, which Josh thought was a bold choice.

He skipped over Zay and his zoot suit, something that the poor boy had been rocking since their first freshman dance. This one was black with dark green pinstripes, which didn’t look as ostentatious as it sounded when he’d heard it originally described. Instead, he focused on Riley’s poor terrified date.

It didn’t matter how many times he had been over to the house – which included no less than three meals this semester alone – William Bixby always looked afraid that Cory was going to snap at any moment and pummel him to death with a printed copy of the rules to date his daughter. Josh supposed that he should feel sorry for helping Maya perpetuate the myth that such a thing actually existed – 200 pages and spiral-bound. But the joke was too good to pass up. He too was in a three-piece; this one in an amazing shade of very dark blue, and his pocket square was pale blue.

He was shaking Cory’s hand nervously when Topanga descended the stairs, clapping her hands and smiling to herself. “Your dress looks amazing, Isadora.” She gave the girl a brief hug, slowly easing her husband away from her daughter’s date. “And you boys look incredibly dashing.” A quick kiss to William’s cheek, with a hand on Lucas’s shoulder, and she was turning back around. “If you want to keep playing video games Auggie, you’re gonna have to move to another room.” When her youngest began to pout, Topanga merely shook her head. “Josh, will you give Shawn a hand moving the couch, I want to make sure there’s enough room to get pictures.”

Riley arrived sometime between the time the request was made and when Josh and Shawn had moved the couch no less than three different times, per Topanga’s instruction. She skipped across the room like a Disney princess in her Cinderella blue mid-calf length dress. He’d heard her talking about the sheer neckline and capped sleeves more than once since she’d picked it out two weeks ago, the bodice itself covered in rhinestone embellishments. William let out an appreciative cough, keeping one eye on Cory, and Riley twirled again, her hair spinning around her. It had been pulled up in the front with a subtle braid of hair, which held an equally delicate rhinestone headband. Her smile shone the brightest though, as she wrapped her arm around her date and reaped in the accolades.

“Hot damn.” It had been Zay’s voice to break over the chatter over Riley’s hair, his eyes going wide before he’d let out a whistle. “I don’t know if you’ve ever been told this before,” his eyes slid past Riley’s shoulder. “But girl, you clean up nice.”

Cory was about to correct Zay on his language, and the proper way to compliment a woman, when everyone else seemed to follow Zay’s line of sight, Lucas’s arms falling dumbly to his sides. Riley, already knowing what they were looking at, just smirked.

Where his niece channeled her inner princess, Maya had chosen to rebel against hers in probably the darkest red she could find. The dress she wore was anything but simple, and Josh had to question where exactly Topanga had found it. It was shorter than Riley’s, with the flowy multi-tier chiffon skirt coming to stop just above her knee instead of under it. And instead of the strapless number that she had teased Cory with the day before, it had an amazingly high neckline. The entire bodice was covered in beads and sequins and other glittery things. It was sleeveless, which didn’t come as a shock to him, but when she spun, on order of her best friend, he cause a glimpse at the sheer amount of skin the so-called keyhole showed of her back.

He didn’t hear the compliment that Lucas had given her, still trying to pick his jaw up off the floor, but Maya allowed her date to twirl her again, her red strappy heels bringing her chin up to shoulder height. Maya laughed whole-heartedly though, a twinkle in her eye that just spelled trouble. “Shawn’s home for the weekend,” she explained without even looking towards the adults. “So it’s either back to my place, or we’re gonna need to find a hotel.”

The lens popped off the camera with a satisfying clunk, and everyone turned to watch Shawn glare pointedly at Maya. “That is enough, Maya Penelope,” he told her through gritted teeth. “Please?”

She nodded carefully, meeting his gaze.

Farkle saved her from actually apologizing, clapping his hands and gesturing to Riley and her date. “Shall we get this round of pictures started?” He asked with a nod. “Reservations are at 7, and the limo is waiting.”

Josh spoke without actually meaning to. “Who gets a limo for Homecoming?”

There was a pause before Maya spun on her heel and gestured to the men. “You have actually met Farkle, right?” Josh could only nod. “And yet you still ask that question?”

“Retracted,” he announced with a quick grin. He still wasn’t sure when she had made her way over to his side of the room.

There was more clapping, and Topanga was directing everyone in front of the fireplace, which had been helpfully cleared of family photos for the occasion.

Fifteen minutes later he realized that she had managed to sneak away from her friends as Riley was being forced into fifty million pictures with her parents and her boyfriend. She was fiddling with something in her hands, her back to the room, and then he realized just what she was doing.

“Some chaperone is going to have your ass,” Josh joked while watching Maya tuck an antique art nouveau silver hip flask into a lace garter on her thigh.

It had been a 16th birthday present from Farkle, who had found it in an antique shop on Avenue A one afternoon. The card had said that it was to help her in her future endeavors as the lascivious trophy wife that would be the future Mrs. Farkle Minkus. They’d all gotten a good laugh – Maya more so due to the shot of what she found to be Grey Goose Magnum found in the flask – and Josh had to admit that he had never actually thought of it again. While the teens had all more or less, and in that he was definitely looking at Riley, admitted to having their fair share at drinks, none of them drank enough for the flask to have actually been necessary.

Still, Maya’s smile was blinding. “Chaperone’s don’t enforce morality,” she told him carefully, keeping an eye on the corner where Riley was taking photos with her parents. “They force immorality to be discreet.”

He couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of his throat. Maya smoothed her dress back down; making sure the flask was well hidden before twirling slightly, and kicking a foot up. His whistle was low, and he tried to keep his hands the same way as he clapped softly, “I am officially impressed.”

“Only took you four years.”

 “This isn’t the first time.” When exactly did his tone become suggestive?

Maya’s eyebrow rose, and her lips pursed. He got the strangest sense of déjà vu as her chin came up slightly and her eyes locked with his. Something told him he was on the wrong side of the conversation though, and he found that slightly entertaining. Maya took a step closer to him and then cocked her head to the side. “Good to know.”

He would have said something else, anything really because Maya Hart getting the last word was not something that should ever be allowed in order to keep that cocky grin off of her lips, but Lucas was gesturing from the other side of the room.

“One more picture,” he called, and Maya hopped down from the step of the kitchen and wrapped one arm around his waist. Lucas took a step away from her though, holding his hand out to Shawn. “Camera please, Mr. Hunter.”

“For the last time, Friar. My name is Sha-” Then Lucas’s request clicked and Shawn took a step back. “I’ll be damned if I’m handing my camera to a teenager.”

“How else can we get a picture of you and Maya tonight?” His voice was steady, and Josh saw Maya’s eyes melt just slightly.

Her smile was slow, and Josh knew Shawn was a goner.

“You drop my camera, and I’m dropping you,” he warned, pulling the strap from around his forearm.

 

* * *

 

They returned home shortly before two in the morning, both carrying their shoes to better navigate the living room. Curfew had been negotiated well in advance, so for once there wasn’t a parent sitting curled up on the couch with a book, or grading papers, waiting to hear how their night went. Maya took Riley’s shoes as she turned back to the door, slipping them onto the floor near Auggie’s tennis shoes. She sent a deliriously happy, but yawning, Riley to her room with a kind word and a kiss on the cheek before turning back to the door.

From his place at the bay window, he watched as another figure followed her in, the door not shutting all the way behind it.

“Thank you for making sure we made it to the door.” Maya shrugged out of Lucas’s suit jacket and held it out to him. “Although I’m pretty sure that we could have done it on our own.”

“You maybe,” Lucas dropped the jacket back onto the chair and turned back to his date. With her shoes off, she was a full foot shorter than he was, and Josh examined their profiles carefully. They were physically closer than he had seen them earlier, or even earlier in the week when they had been on the street together. Lucas made a vague gesture towards the stairs, and Maya didn’t have to turn to verify whom he was referring to. “Something tells me that Riley was one misstep away from needing to be carried to bed.”

“Lightweight,” Maya laughed, and Josh realized that Maya really had more than one. “You’re not wrong,” she answered slowly, covering a yawn with a palm. Another chuckle, and she seemed to curl herself in Lucas’s chest. “You sure about that hotel room?”

“Farkle and I are headed to his place.” Lucas’s tone was almost capitulating. If Maya mentioned it one more time, Josh knew the boy wouldn’t be able to stand a chance. “And Shawn’s expecting you to be here in the morning.”

“Damn you for being the responsible one.” Lucas’s chin dropped to the top of her head, and Maya nodded. “I just really don’t want to go upstairs to  _that_  right now.”

He seemed less than sympathetic when they separated. “So you finally admit you’re using me, Hart?”

“We’re using each other,” Maya said honestly.

Her voice was tinged with something that Josh couldn’t put his finger on. Maya was standing as still as he had ever seen her, her face tilted up to her date’s. Josh couldn’t see it clearly, Lucas was blocking the light coming in from the hall, but he could see the side of the younger man's face and the way his eyes were softening. This was a conversation that they had had before. Something told him that he would be very interested to know whether or not Maya and Lucas truly agreed on the terms of their arrangement.

A heartbeat and Lucas saw something in her eyes that made him smile. “I know you’re spending the day with Shawn,” he started. “What do you say to dessert in the East Village tomorrow night.”

The smile that spread across Maya’s lips could be seen in the dark. “Rice to Riches?” She said quickly. When Lucas nodded, her grin seemed to get wider. “Okay, but you realize that Shawn’s actually going to impose my curfew, right?”

A pause and then, “We’ll make it work.” His phone vibrated in his pocket and he didn’t even bother to check it. “That’s gonna be Farkle.”

“Don’t make me go up there,” she whined.

“You’ll live,” another moment and they both yawned. “Text me in the morning?”

“She starts going on about Will telling her he loves her and I’m going to call you so you have to listen to this shit.”

Lucas laughed, grabbing for his jacket and shaking his head. “You love it,” he teased. “Riley’s happy and you love it.”

“She gets too happy and she’s going to try to get us to become an actual couple.” Maya’s tone was teasing, but Josh took comfort in knowing that they weren’t sneaking behind his niece’s back with their arrangement. “Then I’ll have to kill her, and I would not do well in prison.”

Phone buzzing again, Lucas actually took a step backward to the door. “Stay strong,” he teased, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. “Try to get some sleep.”

The door closed, and Maya stood still for a moment before reaching forward to lock it. Josh took a slow breath, waiting for Maya to decide to hear upstairs. She stooped to pick up the shoes again and paused.

“Never figured you for a creeper.”

He jumped. Joshua Matthews physically jumped when he realized Maya was addressing him. “How’d you know?”

“You breathe loudly.” Maya turned and dropped herself onto the arm of the chair. “What are you doing down here in the dark?”

“Morgan called.” When Maya’s head cocked to the side as if to reiterate her previous question, Josh laughed. “Auggie fell asleep in my room.” He held up his phone as if it would offer her proof. “Apparently Ma’s been complaining that I don’t come home much anymore, and she wanted to check up on her favorite brother.”

“Don’t tell Cory she said that.” Having met the elusive Morgan Matthews, Maya knew first hand that her declaring a favorite brother would probably send him into a panic attack. “Then again, let me do it.”

Josh laughed and flipped his phone over in his hand. “Am I supposed to pretend that  _that_  didn’t just happen?” He gestured to the front door with his free hand.

“I kissed my date good night.” Her shrug was careful, and Josh noticed that despite her pleasantly buzzed impersonation earlier, her guard had been up for a while. “Any conversation that happened before is strictly hearsay if you decide to share it.”

His hand came up slowly, trying to calm the beast before she got the wrong idea. “Your secret’s safe with me,” he assured her.

Maya’s mouth opened and closed a few times as if her brain was having trouble processing the fact that for once she didn’t have to defend herself. “Thanks,” she reached under her skirt and popped the garter off, curling the lace around the  bottle.

Somewhere above them there was a low whine and a thud, and Maya laughed despite herself. “How much did she have to drink?” 

“One shot of this,” she held up the bundle in her hand. “And half of Farkle’s beer.”

Josh chuckled despite himself. “You’re going to have to get her wasted at least once before she goes to college on her own.”

Maya’s smile reflected his. “You’re assuming that without me she’s actually going to go to a party.” The girls had applied to only one college together. Riley’s first choice had been Yale, much to Topanga’s delight. Maya took comfort in knowing that almost all of her schools were New York based, so if Riley got in, they would only be two hours apart by train. While it’s not close enough to see each other every day, It’ll make weekend visitation easier, and neither girl is completely terrified of being left alone. “Without me she’d never unfold her hands.”

“Without her, you’d never come back.” He watched her eyes widen in surprise. He had been regaled of the fated detention of 7th grade from both his brother and Riley, laughing at the appropriate moments of Maya’s tenacity.

There was another whine, and the spell was broken. “Turn on a light next time,” Maya cautioned. Shoes in one hand, flask in the other, she slid across the floor on the way to the stairs. Josh watched her slip through the hallway without faltering. Smiling to himself, he double checked that she locked the door and headed back to the guest room, hoping that his cousin could be rolled to one side of the bed without too much effort.

 

* * *

 

I have written a second interlude for this part, would anyone like to see Lucas and Maya at the after party?


	5. [Interlude] After the Party is the After Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucas turned fully; making sure that her body did the same. “Besides, the only people whose opinions really matter in all this,” he used his free hand to cup her chin. Her teeth were digging into her lip, but Maya allowed her face to be tilted upward. She almost refused to look at him on principle. “Is us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick Author's Note: This is not the chapter I set out to write. The one I started with was cute and had absolutely no background into Maya and Lucas and how they got the way they were. So naturally I scrapped that when I reread it. I'm seriously considering starting a story that starts at the beginning of Lucas and Maya's "understanding" in case anyone's interested.

Title: Sooner or Later

Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World

Author: And The Moment's Gone

Language: English, Rating: Rated: T

Words: 4,550

Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

 _Official Disclaimer_ : All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

They'd abandoned the dance half an hour after the King and Queen had been crowned – Maya still giggling over the scandalized looks on their faces when Lucas and Riley had won, even though they hadn't been a couple.

"It's a competition based on popularity and school spirit," Farkle informed them as they climbed back into the limo. Smackle had announced a craving for fries when Maya suggested heading to the after party.

"And if there are any two people in the entire damn school that exude those two things it's the Mayor of RileyTown and All-American Boy over here." Poor Will had looked almost terrified at the fact that Maya was trying to wipe her eyes and not smear her mascara. "I do give you props for humbly declining the dance and handing her back to her date though, Sundance."

Allowing his date to curl up in his lap, Farkle eyed Zay from the other end of the limo. "Why didn't we go through with the plan to stuff the ballot box?" He asked with an eyebrow quirked toward the giggling blonde?

Zay propped his feet up on the bench seat opposite to him and shrugged, "Something about cheating the system and moral repugnance," he repeated, his voice taking on a nasal quality in a poor imitation of the Minkus. "I think I stopped listening when you told me 'no.'"

Farkle took a sip of the water bottle that he had left in the cup holder from earlier. "Remind me never to do that again." If they played their cards right, they may actually be able to get Maya elected Prom Queen. Farkle pondered that for a moment.

"Tell me 'no?'" He nodded, reaching for his own bottle of water. "I'm pretty sure you can count on that." When Lucas caught his eye, he discretely thrust his chin at Maya and mouthed the word 'Prom.'

Lucas's eyes lit up, and he caught Riley's questioning gaze and nodded back to Zay. Maya would most likely kill them all – slowly – but it would totally be worth it.

"Would 'paying for the privilege of my company' happen to include buying me a milkshake?" Maya was almost horizontal now, her legs kicked up onto the seat between her and Zay, and her torso practically in Lucas's lap. She had turned, her arms the only thing keeping herself upright, her face inches below his chin.

Their eyes caught when he tilted his face down to hers, and if they weren't in a limo with five of their best friends in the world – one of them being the indomitable hyper-happy Riley Matthews – he probably would have. Lucas settled for resting his hand on the top of her thigh, under her skirt, right above where her garter stopped. "You're not gonna let that go, are you?"

She popped the 'p' on the word 'nope,' letting on elbow drop to allow his other arm to take the pressure. "You off-handedly compared me to a hooker, Cowboy." Her tongue darted out to wet her lips, and she could have sworn that she saw his pupils dilate. "That's gonna stick around till at least the end of the year."

"I thought we all agreed to no sex in the limo!" It was Zay that shouted, kicking Lucas's shin lightly. "If I didn't get to invite Alexis Ling for a ride, you two don't get to take one with us in here with you!"

Riley looked like she was about to choke on her tongue, face red and eyes bright when Maya pulled herself back up to a sitting position. "No one is having limo sex," Lucas scolded pointedly. Then he turned back to Maya. "And I know exactly how much alcohol is on your stomach right now. Milk is not the best thing to add to it." He knew the pout was coming long before Maya pulled her dark lips down into a frown. "I will, however, get you the greasiest burger available at whatever place Lou is stopping for Smackle's fries."

She seemed to ponder it for a moment before biting her lower lip. "Extra pickles?"

"If that's what makes you happy." Riley laughed at the way Lucas shook his head. She had been told plenty of times that what was going on with them was merely an arrangement. While Lucas had had more than his fair share of dates in school, sometimes taking the same girl out more than once, he didn't want to tie himself to anyone when he had applied to schools everywhere from Texas A&M to Cornell. The bulk of his long distance friendships had faded over the years, and at 18 he couldn't imagine trying to figure out how to handle a long distance relationship.

Maya was just picky.

Or scared. Riley could definitely make an argument for scared.

Because Maya did not date; not really. Because dating meant letting someone into your life, and that was the sort of thing that scared Maya Hart shitless. Letting someone in meant talking about her family, her half a mom – which hadn't changed much since getting her big break besides being able to leave cash on the counter, and be able to make sure the heat stayed on all winter – and her non-existent father. Kermit Clutterbucket had reappeared at the tail end of junior high, new family in toe, to introduce Maya to her sisters. He'd offered her a room in his home, a whole new wardrobe, and all the fatherly love that she could stand if she was willing to move to Chicago so he could prove to his other family that he hadn't abandoned her.

There wasn't a stopwatch quick enough to time how long it took her to tell him as politely as possible to shove _that_ arrangement up his ass. Shawn had taken the kids to Jersey the day after, allowing Katy the time she needed to demand Kermit never contact Maya again. Other than cards at her birthday and Christmas, he pretty much obeyed.

The kicker was the fact that Maya was still firmly in camp 'People Always Leave,' in which –present company, her family, and Shawn excluded- no one she got attached to stuck around, and those that stayed wanted something from her. When she admitted to her arrangement with Lucas, Maya had been insistent that it wasn't anything more than what it was. That it couldn't be. Because the second she and Lucas jumped off that bridge, there would be no going back.

And she couldn't handle losing anyone else.

That didn't stop Riley from trying to nudge, subtly of course, that if their 'arrangement' progressed to something more that she wouldn't mind. She and Lucas had never made their thing official, ever, and their friendship worked so much better than any of their 'dates' had. And she was happy with William. He'd been her casual boyfriend their junior year, becoming exclusive the following summer. Whatever it was that Lucas and Maya were doing between dating other people made them happy, and Riley wasn't above pointing that out.

Riley hadn't realized that she had zoned out. Not until limo door slammed shut again, and she came back to herself watching Farkle reposition himself in his seat, handing a bag across the limo to Lucas. He made Maya say 'please' – and 'thank you' – for her burger before passing the bag down to Zay, who pulled a box of chicken nuggets out before balling it up and taking aim for the trash can on the other side of Smackle. It landed cleanly in his target, and he preened for exactly thirty seconds before he realized that no one was clapping for him.

Maya's moan drowned out any complaint he might have had, and when all eyes turned on her, she readjusted her place beside Lucas, making sure that everyone saw that they had been keeping their hands to themselves and nodded to her half eaten burger. "What?"

It was William that laughed first, returning back to massaging Riley's feet. "Someone's obviously not doing his job right," he commented off-handedly.

There was a laugh, quick and muffled before Lucas realized just what was being implied.

Will had to reach over and grab Maya's burger when she doubled over, cackling manically.

* * *

New York may have become his home, but Lucas honestly didn't think that he'd ever be amazed at the capital thrown around for what should be simple things; Such as the fact that the 'senior's only' after party had somehow wound up to be held in a penthouse with a private deck overlooking Battery Park. He could have sworn he'd heard someone mention that someone's dad was a real estate agent, and this place had been up for sale, so it was already vacant, and staged. Farkle had tried to explain it to him, after two beers and a shot of whiskey, but it hadn't made any more sense then either.

While Riley had immediately drug her date out onto the new dance floor, Zay following after, Lucas's date staked out a the couches on the patio, dropping Riley's purse next to hers on the seat across from her. He dutifully helped Farkle grab drinks for the ladies – because logic and his Mama told him that you don't trust a drink at a party unless you poured it yourself – before settling next to her, taking her hips in his hand to pull her into his lap.

"You two-"

"Please don't." Maya cut Smackle off with a wave of her hand. They'd been fielding comments about how great they looked together all night. Maya appreciated the notice, really she did, but she was kind of tired of hearing it. Was it really so impossible to believe that a guy and a girl could go to a dance as friends?

"While entirely possible, you haven't stopped touching him all night." Farkle cut into her inner monolog. It seemed Riley wasn't the only one to accidently voice her thoughts out loud anymore.

When Maya kicked out at him, it was Lucas who blocked the blow. "We don't abuse the Farkle." He reminded her with a semi-stern glare.

Rolling her eyes, Maya suppressed a growl,

A voice on the other side of the patio shouted for Farkle, and he and Smackle excused themselves. Lucas was going to give him crap from running away from Maya when they got home. The girl in question shifted again, and he was reminded that if he had been Farkle, he probably would have run too.

He leaned her to the side, so her rear was on the seat, and her legs curled up in his lap. Her mouth opened to protest, but he managed to shut that up with a look. "What's with the mood?" He asked her carefully.

If there was ever a time that she didn't want to answer that question, it was probably then.

When she didn't answer, he moved them again, this time scooting himself to the other side of the small couch so they could face each other. "Come on, Maya. It's just us."

"There's at least a hundred and fifty people here," her look matched his. "It is definitely not 'just us.'"

His voice dipped, "Do you want it to be?"

"We're not calling Lou just so you can have sex in a limo."

Lucas opened his mouth to refute the claim but thought better of it. The second he told Maya he hadn't thought about having sex in the limo, she would not only call him a liar, she'd probably announce it too, and that wouldn't go over well with the bulk of their senior class. " _Not_ where I was going with that." He grabbed her hand, pulling her to her feet with him. Zay and a lady friend were headed out the glass doors, and he flagged them over with a wave. "Watch the purses?" He asked quickly.

Zay sat down on the couch that held the ladies things, and Farkle's overcoat, and gave Lucas a quick thumbs up. "Where you two going?"

"To flag down Lou fo-"

While she was too tall for Lucas to wrap his arm around her head like he used to do to Farkle, or when she wasn't in heels, it didn't stop Lucas from cupping both hands over her mouth. "Maya's in a mood," he smiled down at Zay. Maya was licking his palm. "I'm taking her to walk it off."

With a flick of his eyes to Maya, Zay's mouth just seemed to smile wider. "I like her story better." He took a sip of his beer – straight from the bottle – before turning back to his friend. "Does at least one of you have your phone?"

Lucas nodded, catching Zay's eyes and sending him, what he hoped, was a nonverbal reminder that they were in public. And anything he did tonight could very well wind up as someone's SnapStory, or gracing their Instagram. His best friend offered no reaction to signify that the gesture had been caught, and with one hand sliding down to Maya's hip, he decided to just let his friend have some fun.

On their way to the elevator, he watched Maya use her left hand and a series of looks and what could have passed for sign language to tell Riley that she and Lucas were getting air and that Lucas had his phone. Every time he thought he might have picked something up, they seemed to change a signal. She bounced to the music in the main room, allowing her right hand to hold his to her hip so they didn't lose each other in the crowd. It would feel intimate if he didn't know that she and Riley used that tactic regularly, and with anyone they were trying to stick with at house parties. Out in the hall, they had to dodge teenagers crawling all over themselves after discovering a bit of privacy. It wasn't until they slid past Missy Bradford and her date, and into the elevator, that it felt like Maya finally took a breath.

"So it's about the crowd." Lucas took a step away from her leaned against the elevator wall.

Her mouth said no at the same time she nodded. Then she shook her head. "Not exactly," she allowed.

Lucas had become cautious of Maya getting quiet early in their friendship. He waited another few minutes before catching her eyes. "Exactly?" He held out the word carefully, hoping that she would latch back on and finish her thought.

He was about a minute away from hitting the emergency stop button, from making Maya actually look at him, when she shook her head. "It doesn't matter."

They had hit the lobby now, and Lucas wrapped an arm around Maya as they walked past the building's front desk and into the night. They didn't bother with the crosswalk, the street was damn near dead anyway, and His hand dropped to her waist when she slid down the steps to the park.

It wasn't until Maya had stopped to lean against the railing leading out onto the Hudson that he realized that he had walked out of the party while holding two beers, neither of which he remembered picking up after telling Zay they were leaving. But Maya pulled one from his hand and rolled it between his palms before taking a slow sip. Her shoulders had relaxed, and the tension in her face eased. Since she wasn't offering any more of an explanation, Lucas went back through the night to try to figure it out himself.

Maya had been fine all through dinner. She'd been properly horrified when they were shown to their private eating area at the Michelin-starred steakhouse, even more so when they'd been told that Mr. Minkus had already taken care of any bill that they would accumulate. He didn't remember her eating too much. She had rested her head on Farkle's shoulder to ask him a question before she realized that, unlike the rest of them, his menu actually had prices and decided on a salad. Farkle had ordered her some mac and cheese – which he didn't tell her contained truffle – and some fries when she refused to get anything else for herself, which Lucas knew bothered her slightly. But that had to do with the price of things; Maya hadn't become tense during dinner.

This shift in Maya hadn't occurred until they'd gotten to the dance. All the previous dances, she and Riley had seemed to ditch their dates at the door, walking in arm in arm, and bristling with energy. For this event, Maya had allowed Lou to help her scoot out of the limo and then fallen back, taking his arm and allowing Riley and Will to bounce ahead. But that couldn't have been it either. Maya liked Will, liked the smile that he put on Riley's face, and she even admitted that he was a more than adequate dancer from what she could tell from the two or three turns she took around the room with him. She and her best friend weren't joined at the hip anymore, but that had never seemed to bother her before.

That's when it hit him.

She had waved off Smackle's comment about them with a wave and a 'please don't.' Maya hadn't been rude, but firm, and had Smackle and Farkle not walked away shortly after, she would have laughed it off and pretended it didn't happen.

But it had.

Numerous times, in fact.

It was his turn to contemplate his bottle

"So what is it about everyone saying we're a cute couple that's so offensive to you?"

She turned then; laying the arm that was holding the bottle flat on the railing. "Probably the fact that we're not _actually_ a couple."

Her voice went up at the end, and Lucas knew that he either nipped this in the bud, or she was going to attempt to walk the two miles home by herself, without her purse. "Well since you vetoed the idea of an ad in the quad stating that you're just using me for _sex_ ," he waved to his body as he said it, and cocked his head to the side as if to tell her that he didn't blame her. "You're gonna have to forgive people for getting confused."

And she'd be damned if she didn't laugh at that.

"Would you prefer the school paper?" Taking another sip of his beer, Lucas shook his head. "I can talk to Hilary," Maya gripped her beer with both hands to try to keep from dropping it.

He trailed off to allow her to breathe.

"Point," Maya announced after a second.

Lucas turned fully; making sure that her body did the same. "Besides, the only people whose opinions really matter in all this," he used his free hand to cup her chin. Her teeth were digging into her lip, but Maya allowed her face to be tilted upward. She almost refused to look at him on principle. "Is us."

Her eyes softened just a touch, and Lucas didn't allow himself to think about how horribly wrong he could have misjudged the situation, choosing instead to slide his hand from her jaw to the back of her neck and pulling her up for a kiss.

If he'd even thought to describe the kiss as sweet, Maya would most likely try to deck him. He'd meant it to be a distraction, a reminder that no matter what anyone else thought, or what they decided to label themselves; they did what they did because it was what they needed. The arm holding the bottle dropped behind her back, pulling her closer, and he smiled against her lips when she twined her arms behind his neck.

When she finally pulled away, her smile was back, playful and just so Maya. "I almost forgot how good you are at that." She brushed her lips against his again slowly, not allowing him to deepen it before pulling away again.

"Short term memory bothering you that much?" Lucas dropped his other hand to briefly tickle her side when she spun to get away from him; he pulled her away from the rail to the grass. "We did that last night."

"Technically it was two nights ago," when Lucas dropped himself onto the grass, she quirked an eyebrow. "We had two minutes alone while we waited in front of your Mama's SUV, Mr. MVP." He held his arm out to her, and she shook her head. "Not only am I not interested in getting this –unbelievably- expensive dress wet from the dew, but this skirt is short." When he raked his eyes down her legs to show that he had actually noticed, she kicked him.

"All apologies, ma'am." Lucas didn't need to be told twice, sliding off his overcoat, laying it down in the spot next to her.

She curtseyed before dropping down onto her knees and tucking her skirt under her to sit down, leaning her head against his chest.

"See, now this is what I like about New York."

"That two teenagers can have beers in the middle of a public park at twelve thirty at night, and there's not a cop in sight?" Maya finished off her bottle and tossed it in the direction of the closest trashcan. There was a clink, and she was almost certain that she would have to double check that she hadn't just littered.

Lucas's lips pursed, and he tried to look disappointed that she had interrupted him. "Smart ass."

"What?" Maya just shrugged, "it's currently _my_ favorite part about New York."

"I let you be weird and retrospective." He shot back, tossing his own bottle. The clink was quieter, and Maya almost bit out that it was just the two of them, and he didn't have to be so perfect all the damn time. When he looked back down at her, though, she nodded and waved her hand in apology. "I know it's referred to as the 'city that never sleeps,'" there was a car horn somewhere in the distance as if to emphasize his point. "But for the most part, depending on where you are, you can find the quiet."

She allowed him his moment to bask, before sighing. "I didn't realize the quiet of New York City included a dubstep version of a Nick Jonas song."

It didn't matter that she was right, and if they were quiet for more than a moment, they could hear the faint sounds of the party 28 floors above them. It had more to do with the fact that she'd listened and then proceeded to ruin the moment. But he could hear the smile in his voice, so instead of calling her names, or fussing, he rotated on his arm and pulled her below him, forcing her lips beneath his own.

And this was the part of their – whatever it was they called it – that no one ever saw. It wasn't just the sex, although Lucas had to admit that Maya being able to tell when he needed to let off steam, and not judge him for it, was nice. It was the closeness that he didn't get from anyone else. Zay and Farkle could sit in silence with him, doing their own things, but it was Maya that would curl up in his lap while he read, headphones on and humming along to whatever she decided was her favorite song that day.

There was also no expectation to perform; he thought wryly, one hand keeping them upright while the other skimmed her thigh under her dress. Kissing didn't always lead to groping, and foreplay wasn't always required. She shivered below him, and it wasn't until he repositioned his hand, right above her right shoulder, that he realized it was because the bulk of her back was not lying his overcoat.

She broke the kiss with a gasp and a breath, and he sat up immediately. "Ya know, you really don't notice the wind until you're laying on wet grass."

As she pulled her flask from her thigh, Lucas shrugged off his suit jacket and dropped it onto her shoulders. "Sorry."

"Pretty sure that's not something you need to apologize for." She took another sip, allowing the alcohol to warm her from the inside, and then handed the flask to Lucas.

He wasn't entirely expecting the Jameson when it hit his tongue. Usually, Maya liked to keep something a little lighter. Handing it back, he really hoped that she hadn't given Riley her customary shot. Lucas pulled her against him again, her back to his front, and slid his hand into her hair to pull her up for another kiss. She turned slightly, to resettle into his lap, and he slid his hand up her thigh to keep it from going any farther than it had.

Lucas's phone buzzed, and he let go of Maya's hip to pull it out of his pocket. **Maya's needed upstairs**. He sent Farkle back a question mark, and almost as soon as he'd hit send, he got another one. **Now**.

"Something's up with Riley." Holding his phone out for her to see, Lucas pulled himself to his feet, reaching a hand out to help her up.

"It's almost one anyway," It took less than a tug for Maya to regain her footing, reading and rereading Farkle's message while Lucas retrieved his jacket. A breeze caught, and Maya burrowed herself further into his jacket and allowed him to wrap an arm around her shoulders to steer her back in the other direction. "We taking bets?"

Lucas shook his head, already looking both ways to make crossing the street easier. "Will looked nervous earlier, but I don't think he broke up with her."

"You don't even joke about doing that on Homecoming," she agreed. "It's like dumping someone on Prom night."

"Speaking of…" Lucas pulled her a stop right in front of the double doors of the building. "Will you go to Prom with me?"

"You sure you want to lock that one down now, Friar?" Maya's head cocked to the side, and the urge from earlier almost overwhelmed him. "Prom's six months away."

He contemplated his next sentence quickly. Telling her that he was sure they'd still be doing what they were doing sounded too much like a couple, and telling her that the way she wound up rebuffing the guys in their class that took her out hinted that she would probably be free would probably get him slapped. So he took a step closer to her, his arms threading around her waist. "I want to make sure I've got the most amazing date possible." When she just looked up at him, he smirked. "I plan to be up for Prom King after all."

Rolling her eyes, Maya reached for the door. "First one of you idiots to put my name in the ballot box for Queen is getting a Taser to the nuts."

"That's painfully specific," Lucas allowed her to move ahead of him so she couldn't see his smile.

Despite her height, Maya made it to the elevator in only a few long strides. "What can I say? A vague disclaimer is nobodies friend."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coming up... "You do understand it's against the law to beat your child?"


	6. Part III: Did Someone Say Turkey?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Checking her watch, Maya knelt on the window seat and propped her head on Riley's shoulder. "You know what I love?" She asked quickly, not waiting for a response, "Pie. Which I won't get until you two get off the phone." Riley's smile didn't waver as her best friend's hand came up to cover hers on her phone. "You both are incredibly loved, and we will see you tomorrow Will." With a smile to Josh, Maya used Riley's finger to hit the 'end' button and caught the phone when Riley just let go. "Can we eat now?"

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 4,108  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

_Official Disclaimer_ : All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

Before school let out for Thanksgiving, Josh had been presented with two options. His sister had been married earlier in the year and, living in Portland with her husband, gotten it into her head that she would host her in-laws that lived in town for the holiday. Upon realizing what it would take to put together a Thanksgiving feast for thirteen people, something that Josh could have sworn should have been discovered sooner than two weeks before said occasion, Morgan promptly freaked out and called her mother to beg they up the number to fifteen so she wouldn't be doing it alone. His mother, trying not to be worried that running to her daughter's rescue would make her a bad mother her youngest son, had offered to fly him out after his last class so they could be together for the holiday.

When he'd expressed that spending six days in Portland with his frantic sister and her husband's family didn't thrill him, his sister-in-law didn't hesitate to offer up his other opportunity. He practically lived in their guest room anyway, and they were already hosting Shawn - who had made it a point to say that he would rather slam his fingers in a door than spend the holiday with his brother's wife's family - and Maya, who's mother had been stuck in Atlanta with shows that bookended the holiday. Riley had told him that Maya had apparently received more than one Thanksgiving invitation when she accidently let it slip that her mother wouldn't be home. She had been proud when she spoke of how the Minkus family had insisted that she at least join them for breakfast when she declined theirs – which Riley elaborated would include sausage and Swiss cheese stuffed sourdough French toast and orange Julius.

Looking down at the remnants of his own breakfast, eaten around noon after a late night of playing video games with his nephew, he was more than a little pleased with himself for accepting the second offer.

Kicking them all out of the kitchen the night before – a bowl of popcorn, a tube of Pringles, some Oreos and sodas to share for their troubles – Topanga had declared it a 'no fly' zone and mentioned that if anyone wanted something from the other side of the kitchen table until dinner was served, they would have to ask nicely, and pray that she was in the mood to acquiesce. When he and Auggie had finally decided that they were awake enough to venture out of the guest room, he had sent the nine-year-old to brave his mother and returned with two breakfast shakes and the instruction that this was the last bit of sustenance besides beverages that they would be allowed before it was time for turkey. Josh had taken what was given with a smile and then started planning how he was going to con Cory into helping him procure the much-needed coffee.

"Hello Matthews family!" Three hours later, Maya let herself in with a laugh and a smile, shrugging off her pea coat and tossing it in the direction of the coat rack. She didn't stop to see if it had actually landed where she wanted it to, choosing to bounce over to the table and snag a carrot. "How ya'll doin' this afternoon?"

"Ya'll?" Josh turned to his brother in the couch, raising an eyebrow.

"Don't ask," Cory shook his head quickly, one eye on Maya. "For the love of all that is holy, please don't ask."

He let out a long breath. When his brother didn't offer up any more information, he sat up a little straighter on the couch, his eyes still on the television.

"Well hello, Maya," Topanga side-eyed the blonde as she grabbed another carrot. "I take it you had a good morning at the Minkus's."

"Minkii." Maya corrected with a smile. It had been a long-standing joke within the group, and she fully intended it to follow Farkle for the rest of his life. "And breakfast was actually really fun. Mr. Minkus even let Farkle and I try mimosas."

While Cory looked scandalized, Josh just smiled. "How many did you get to try?" He turned then, to watch her walk in front of the television and flop down into the chair. Sparing a look to the older Matthew's in the room to make sure they weren't looking at her, Maya flicked him off. "Buzzed Maya is mean," he decided loudly.

Maya stuck her tongue out at Josh, which didn't have the same effect as it should have since she was laughing, and then crunched down on her pilfered carrot.

"Stuart didn't make you ride the subway like that, did he?" Topanga could care less about the drinking. She knew that Stuart Minkus was a fairly responsible parent and that he most definitely wouldn't have let Maya get drunk; she was also well aware that Maya was not new to the world of alcohol, but if he had let her have a few drinks and sent her from Park Avenue to the Village on the subway, Topanga would have to remind him why she terrified him so much in school.

"Like what?" So she'd had a drink or two. Okay, she'd had two mimosas. But there was no way in hell that she would actually consider herself impaired. Topanga turned around apologetically, and Maya shrugged her off. "And Lou dropped me off on his way home." Josh watched her eyes light up again at the thought of the Minkus Family driver. As a kid who grew up in one of the poorer boroughs of New York City, he didn't have to guess that someone 'sending a car' for her was incredibly amusing. It seemed like her environment finally caught up with her, and she frowned. "Where's Riles?"

"In her room," Cory answered grimly. "She's trying to boycott Thanksgiving again this year."

Maya pushed herself from the chair and started her march to Riley's room. "Did she not learn anything last year?" Hopping onto the first step, she shook her head. "If I don't get my pie because she's being crazy today…"

It suddenly occurred to Josh that  _that_  was the reason why neither of his niece's parents had so much as batted an eyelash when Riley had announced that she would not be celebrating the holiday. Although he was more than a little interested in why Maya was so upset about the pie.

"Riley threw it away." Cory supplied when he remembered that his brother had spent the holiday upstate with his roommates and his girlfriend.

While Josh was entirely certain his brother was serious, he couldn't shake the craziness of it all. "What?"

"She denounced the meal and all it stood for, then threw away Maya's pie." Topanga slid a second casserole into the oven and turned back to the table. "If Shawn hadn't picked that time to crash dinner, and bring more dessert, there might have actually been bloodshed."

"Which is why I brought extra today." Shawn let himself into the apartment; three rather large bakery boxes perched precariously in one hand. "The top box needs to be refrigerated," he supplied when Topanga helped him lighten his load so he could take off his coat. "Katy ordered some Raspberry Charlottes for Maya since she couldn't be here today." He looked around for a moment, noticing that the room was devoid anyone under the age of eighteen and frowned. "She's not still at Minkus's is she?"

Topanga shook her head, trying to create room in the fridge for the box. "Got here about half an hour ago," she noticed Shawn let out a breath and smiled. When he'd promised Maya he would be there for her, no one knew that it would progress to this.

"Upstairs with Little Miss Activist," Cory pointed behind him in the vague direction of the stairs. "I really wish I knew where Riley got this from."

Josh watched as Shawn physically swallowed a laugh, looking from one of the older Matthews to the other. "Really?" Topanga rolled her eyes, and Shawn chuckled. "You're right," he decided. "Complete mystery to me too."

"We didn't act alone, Mr. Cory," she reminded him carefully, finding room on the table for another trivet and then checking the timer.

Shawn nodded, conceding slightly. "It's not my kid refusing to eat her turkey and dumping baked goods into the trash to show her displeasure over the genocide of indigenous people, European barbarism and the conquest of a continent." He turned to Josh, smiling. "Direct quote."

Hiding her smile behind a sip of wine, Topanga checked the timer once more before turning back to the rest of the room. "We've got twenty minutes left on the casserole, Josh would you mind starting to round up the kids?"

After twenty years of life, Josh fully understood a ploy to get him out of the room when he heard one. "Yes ma'am," he saluted, grabbing his soda and beginning his quest. He stopped by Auggie's room first, knocking twice before swinging the door open. Having been banned from the Morgenstern household for the day, Auggie had fled to his room once football had started, preferring to read than watch his father shout at the television for no reason. "Hey Aug," he leaned into the room, waving when he realize that his nephew was lying on the bed with his headphones on.

"What's up?" Auggie dropped his book, picking his feet off of his windowsill.

"Your mom's announced fifteen till food time." He flipped the book over and smiled when he realized that it wasn't likely something that was on his classroom reading list. "Now would probably be a good time to finish the chapter and wash up."

Auggie checked his phone, hoping his best friend had managed to get away from her parents for a few minutes to text him back, and sighed. "Sure thing." He picked his book up again and smiled up at his uncle. "I'll be out soon."

Giving his nephew a quick salute, Josh turned back toward the door. "Roger that." Auggie put his headphones back in and Josh laughed. "Seriously," he said loud enough to be heard. Auggie looked up. "Fifteen minutes."

Auggie shrugged him off a second time, and Josh let himself out, headed across the hall.

He knocked once, just like he did in Auggie's room, and then pushed the door open slowly. He had learned over the years that there were only two moods in his nieces room that he had to pay attention to. The first was when they were being goofy. When their laughter fluttered down the hall, and it didn't matter how many times someone knocked, or called, neither girl would hear you anyway. The second was when it was quiet. That one could have meant one of two things. Depending on the time of day, either girl could be asleep, which was a distinct possibility at any given time. Or they were having a disagreement. That was a tread lightly kind of situation.

While the room was quieter than usual, he was thankful for the fact that it didn't appear that there was an argument going on. Then he realized it was because only half of the dynamic duo was actually in the room. Maya was curled up on the floor in front of the window seat, on top of a mountain of throw pillows, with her sketchpad in hand.

His niece was nowhere to be found.

Knocking again, he smiled when Maya's eyebrows raised but she didn't look up. "Topanga's announcing dinner in a few." She nodded, slipped her thumb through the part she just drew, and then finally looked at him. "Where's Riley?"

Using her graphite covered thumb, Maya pointed out the window. "Fire escape," she clarified when Josh just blinked. "Will FaceTimed," she explained as she closed her sketchpad. "He's in Yonkers, but apparently that's too far away and he couldn't look at his cranberry sauce without being reminded of her."

Nodding slowly, Josh tried not to shrug. "So why is she on the fire escape?"

Maya pulled herself to her feet, tucking her pad into one of the cloth boxes Riley kept on a shelf. "Apparently she didn't appreciate my running commentary during her heartfelt conversation," she shrugged.

"Single white female doesn't look good on you, Maya." If it weren't for the smile on his face, and the laughter in his voice, Maya just might have bite back.

Instead of justifying Josh with an answer, Maya slid onto the window seat, popping her head out. "Turkey time!" She shouted somewhere to her left.

When she pulled herself back in, Josh's smile was still in place. "Where's the cowboy?"

"Texas," her response was quick, and Josh noted that she sounded bored. "Pappy Joe's Thanksgiving is to die for." Her voice quirked up in an imitation of Lucas's accent, "He'n Zay'll be back on Saturday."

The fire escape clanked on the other side of the wall. Riley's voice lilted through the open window in a chorus of 'I love you more's' that had Maya nodding. The truly impressive thing was the way Riley slid back into the room while maintaining eye contact with the phone's camera. "No, I love you." She whispered out again.

Checking her watch, Maya knelt on the window seat and propped her head on Riley's shoulder. "You know what I love?" She asked quickly, not waiting for a response, "Pie. Which I won't get until you two get off the phone." Riley's smile didn't waver as her best friend's hand came up to cover hers on her phone. "You both are incredibly loved, and we will see you tomorrow Will." With a smile to Josh, Maya used Riley's finger to hit the 'end' button and caught the phone when Riley just let go. "Can we eat now?"

"Hungry Maya's mean too," Josh added softly as Maya passed him on the way to the door.

She paused, allowing Riley to pass through the doorway before her, before turning to face her best friend's uncle. "You're lucky you're pretty," she decided after a moment, turning and following Riley down the hallway.

Josh made one more quick stop by Auggie's room, to make sure the boy had actually followed instructions, and when he made it down to the table, he realized that he missed something, again.

"I'll just have a sandwich," Riley was telling her mother quickly, pushing her plate back toward the center of the table. "I already told you I am not participating in your ritual sacrifice."

Taking the empty seat beside Maya, Josh watched as Shawn took a deep sip of his tea in order to avoid his smile being seen. Maya just laughed as Cory tried his hardest not to look horrified. "Thanksgiving is  _not_  a ritual sacrifice!" He shouted at his oldest.

"It is so!" Riley shrieked back, waving to the rest of the table. "To commemorate a past event, you kill and eat an animal." She pointed to the turkey and all the dressings. "It's a ritual sacrifice."

Shawn's eyes cut to Maya only a second before her mouth opened. "With pie!" He shook his head slowly; knowing that while Cory and Riley faced off, there really wasn't anything that the rest of them could do, other than eat. Maya passed the green bean salad to Josh and helped herself to a roll, stuffing it into her mouth while reaching for the gravy.

"You are eating turkey with the rest of us, Riley." Cory was trying to remain calm, he clearly was. "Or you're just not going to eat."

"And now it's turned into a hunger strike," Maya muttered under her breath, earning herself another look from Shawn.

Josh knew he was just going to get the Hunter glare on him too, but he had to laugh. Was this really a replay of last year's meal? And how in the world did he not hear about it later? "You sure you want to get into this?" Shawn asked Maya carefully, his smile peeking out from behind his glare.

"I'm not participating in this sham." Riley was still glaring at her father, the rest of the table leaving them to it. Even Topanga had just shrugged and turned to help Auggie grab what foods he wanted. "It's a sham with yams."

"It's a yamsham!" What no one seemed to realize was that while Maya was snacking straight from the plate, or topping her mashed potato volcano, she had also been dropping food on Riley's plate as well. Sweet potato casserole was added next to Riley's cranberry sauce, and Maya dropped a fork in it like a flag. "Now eat your yams." She set the plate in front of Riley and rolled her eyes when her best friend just stared at her. Riley's mouth opened in rebuttal, and Maya popped a green bean into it, using her free hand to slide it closed. "Hunger strike on a day your mom  _didn't_  spend fifteen hours cooking turkey."

* * *

 

A ringing phone interrupted the silence of scarfing down dessert, and it took Maya a good minute and a half to realize that it was hers. She slid it out of her pocket quickly, thumbing the 'ignore' button before shoving another piece of chocolate mousse into her mouth. When Shawn nudged her with his toe, a questioning look on his face, Maya just shook her head.

"You know what we forgot to do this year?" Riley was curled up in the armchair with a piece of crumble cake. Auggie run out of the house like his pants were on fire when Dewy's parents called to invite him along for their traditional Thanksgiving Movie Adventure, and Cory had fallen asleep in the Matthews' new armchair.

"What did we forget, honey?" Topanga was spread across the couch, thoroughly enjoying the fact that Josh and Maya had volunteered to do the dishes this year, so for once, she had nothing to do post-meal.

"We didn't go around and say what we were thankful for."

There was a snort and Cory's eyes opened carefully. "We would have if you hadn't remonstrated your yamsham."

There was a laugh, and Josh couldn't really tell whom it belonged to, but Topanga rolled her eyes at her husband. "You're absolutely right." Topanga sat up, pulling her feet under her and motioned for Maya to join her on the couch. "I know Auggie's not here, but why don't you start us off?"

As Riley sat back and began to think of all the things that she was thankful for, and whether or not she should include it, Maya detoured on her way from the floor to the couch. She dropped another piece of mousse cake onto her plate next to a Raspberry Charlotte – thank you Mom – and refilled her glass of milk.

"I'm thankful for my family," Riley started out, as if that wasn't the first thing she said every year. "For Mom and Dad, and Gran and Poppop Lawrence, and the Matthew's family." She swept an arm in the direction of Shawn and Maya, her smile just as bright. "And for friends who are just as good as family." Sliding off of her chair, Riley walked around the back of the couch and wrapped both arms around her best friend. "Because I don't know what I'd do without you."

Kissing her cheek carefully, Maya bumped her forehead to Riley's cheek. "You couldn't get rid of me if you tried, Peaches."

"And we've tried," Cory still hadn't opened his eyes, continuing to enjoy the satisfaction of his Thanksgiving food coma.

With an impulsiveness that Shawn immediately recognized, Maya used her middle finger to sweep a dollop of whipped cream off of the top of one of her Raspberry Charlottes. She glanced at the other two adults for a moment before mentally calculating the distance between her and her former teacher and popped her wrist in his direction. It landed with a soft squish in the middle of his face, his unsuspecting inhale taking some cream into his nostrils.

No one spoke, no one smiled.

Shawn's eyes bugged, as Cory sat up and wiped the whipped cream from his face.

"You do understand it's against the law to beat your child?" Shawn asked Maya carefully, as she kept her gaze steady on Cory.

"He's not gonna beat me." Maya's voice was more confident than the rest of her. Josh noted that the fingers that were still covered with whipped cream shook when she brought them up to her mouth.

Cory took a deep breath to make sure that he didn't have any more cream in his nose, and his eyes met Maya's carefully. "You think you're funny?" He asked carefully, scooting to the end of the recliner. "You really thought that was funny."

"You were talking about getting rid of me, Matthews." Maya dipped her finger into her mousse again and smiled. "What was I supposed to do?"

Josh didn't realize until it was too late, that Shawn's banana pudding was sitting on the small table next to the armchair, and Cory had somehow procured the spoon with more than a little pudding still on it. "I see your point." His voice was even, somehow even a little amused, and Maya's body relaxed just a bit.

When the pudding landed in her hair, it was like the dam burst. Maya shrieked, Riley snorted cake, and Topanga immediately went on the defensive, pulling the blanket down from the back of the couch to try to cover it. Maya didn't hesitate to flick a forkful of food back at him, accidently hitting Shawn in the process.

"This is  _so_  not what I had in mind!" Riley squealed as she and her plate rolled to the other side of the chair, Shawn was in the mess now, flipping pudding at both his best friend and hers. Josh took pudding to the side of the face, and when he raised his hands in surrender – due in no small part to the fact that he had finished his dessert, and only had a cup of iced tea to defend himself with – Maya didn't hesitate to practically slam his face into what was left of her Raspberry Charlotte.

"Why, why, why?" Josh turned more fully to the teen, her smile forcing one onto his face. "Why would you do that?"

Maya giggled, and it didn't matter that Cory and Shawn were making a bigger mess than anyone else, or that Topanga  _and_ her blanket were now covered in chocolaty banana raspberry goodness. For the first time all day, Maya's face was completely unguarded, and it was truly an amazing thing. Another laugh, and "you look cute in pink."

"I look cute in pink?" He slid a finger into the pie and wiped it down her cheek. "You're right," he chuckled, pulling her forward enough to miss the spice cake that Shawn launched at the reemerging Topanga. "It  _is_  a really nice color."

"Have you all gone crazy!?" The war stopped abruptly, Auggie slamming the door behind him as he surveyed the carnage.

Amazingly enough, the couch was pretty safe; the blanket that Topanga used was covered in confection, much like Topanga herself. Riley had taken cover behind the chair, so other than a little red faced she was perfectly fine. He and Maya were on the floor now, with pudding in their hair and raspberry on their face. Cory and Shawn were completely covered. Wearing more pudding than Maya actually thought could possibly be contained in Shawn's bowl. They were all laughing, Maya having a hard time catching her breath, and Josh knew that it didn't matter that they weren't possibly getting out of cleaning the mess up before bed, this was one of those holidays that they were going to remember.

"I'm thankful that you four are gonna be the ones cleaning up this room." Topanga stood, folding the blanket up to keep any of the mess from falling out.

Hoisting herself up, and heading into the kitchen in search of a hand towel, Maya followed her best friend's mother's lead. "I'm thankful that even though my mom's 700 miles away, I'm not short on family."

Wiping the side of his face with a finger, Josh rubbed it on the towel Maya had over her shoulder. "Yeah." She shook her head, trying to get the rest of the gunk out of it, and hit him in the face with a wet lock. He physically stopped her head from moving and wiped his face against her shoulder. "And we're not gonna let you go that easily."


	7. Part IV: Auld Lang Syne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I changed my mind." Josh watched her eyebrow rise as she took a sip of her drink, Lucas turning to accept felicitations from Riley and Will. "Suddenly you look very fourteen."

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 3,729  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

There's a lot to be said about receiving an invite to spend New Year's Eve at one of the most exclusive parties in New York City.

It was another thing entirely when this party was being held in the Rainbow Room at the top of the Comcast Building, complete with open bar, car service, and formal reception station-style buffet.

Trying his hardest not to whistle at the opulence around him, Josh tucked his date's hand into his arm and slowly descended the stairs. The room in front of them was decked in silvers and golds and mint green with crystal everywhere. Both Josh and his date had already checked their coats, and a well-dressed assistant with a clipboard waited for them at the bottom of the steps, presumably to help them find their seats. Behind him, his roommate had already started to question whether Josh had to kiss or kill someone to score something this epic for their holiday celebration.

He wasn't entirely sure how to tell him that all he had done was show up to a family game night a few nights ago. Farkle and Maya had done the rest.

They paused, allowing the assistant extra time to converse with whoever it was in front of them. "I just got lucky, I guess."

"Lucky?" The assistant was flipping through pages, seeming more than a little agitated at the fact that she didn't immediately recognize them. "Name please?"

"Joshua –"

"Matthews!" Maya bounced up to them on too tall heels and wrapped her arms around him in an attempt to steady herself. "He's with us, Claudia!" Releasing him just as quickly as he was grabbed, Maya bounced back a step, before launching herself at Christian. "We'll take him too."

Her date appeared next, tall and dapper in the same suit he wore to Homecoming. "You guys are at table four," Lucas informed them as he wrapped an arm around Maya's waist. "Matthews."

"Friar," Josh didn't hesitate to shake Lucas's hand. "Lucas Friar, this is Ellie Holmes, future Nobel physicist."

"Tall order," Lucas whistled after a moment, trying to keep Maya upright and carry on the conversation without actually splitting his attention. Josh noted that he was doing a much better job than anyone would give him credit for. The normally short blonde was explaining the hierarchy of the party to Christian and his new girlfriend. "That is Maya Hart."

"How much has Maya Hart had to drink?" Josh was only partially joking. He had yet to have the privilege of seeing her completely gone before, but something told him that he might learn a thing or two tonight.

"Half a pear Bellini." When Josh's eyes widened, Lucas nodded. "What you see before you is a combination of espresso shots and pixie sticks." Maya giggled at something Allison said behind them, and Lucas managed to distractedly walk her away from the entrance. "It was Riley's idea."

"She's peppier than I am," Maya made it back to the conversation, completing an abbreviated pirouette in her date's arms to face the proper direction. "Let  _that_  sink in for a minute." The draped overlay of her one-shouldered cocktail dress still fluttering as she gesticulated.

At the Minkus's request – and he could thank Topanga's annoyance for the fact that he also knew it was on the Minkus's dime – both girls had been outfitted in darker shades of mint green in order to signify that they were with the family. He hadn't understood it when Farkle had tried to explain the inner workings of Jennifer Bassett-Minkus's party planning, but he did appreciate the results. As they neared the tables to the left of the dais, Josh caught a glimpse of Riley in her knee-length lace sheath dress.

Lucas seemed to catch his eye over the top of Maya's head. "Sugar and Spice," he agreed as if he could read his mind.

Another pirouette and Maya did her best game show model impression as she presented the table behind her. "We're on the other side of the railing," She waved at Riley and Will and turned to her left. "Mr. Minkus and the baby Minkii are more toward the back."

'Baby Minkii' was a vast understatement, but Josh was used to Maya's generalizations. Farkle was the oldest of four, his sister Imogen sharing their table. At fifteen, she and her best friend had been allowed to actually join in the revels of the New Year. The twins, Leighton and Keegan, were back at the table with their parents. The party hadn't officially started yet, and they both looked like they were seconds away from falling asleep on their plates. Josh guessed that was what happened when seven-year-olds decided they were big enough to celebrate with their siblings.

Which brought up the fact that the twins were the only ones in the room who actually had food.

Riley wrapped an arm around him, kissing his cheek and introducing herself to Ellie in one smooth motion. "Buffet starts after Mr. Minkus makes the welcome announcement," she pointed over to the stage where Stuart Minkus had seemed to teleport to,

"Dad's got this big speech," Farkle leaned over the railing, handing two glasses to a waiter. "He thanks the big wigs and the employees that are here, introduces the family and then pronounces it food time." All in all he seemed rather bored with the prospect. "But hey, since the twins are here, we're not required to actually go up on stage this year."

"You guys do this every year?" Ellie had set her purse down, snagged her water glass from her place and rejoined then, threading her arm through Josh's.

"Five times a year." The waiter returned with new glasses of sparkling cider, and Farkle turned to pass them to his sister. "New Years – which is never in the same place twice, Mom said she's considering doing yachts in the Hudson next year. The Minkus International anniversary lunch, which seems to be exclusive to the Central Park Conservatory Garden. Then there's the Family Fun Day in the Hamptons and the 'Big Thank You' party." He was ticking the names off of his fingers now. "And the MI Christmas party, no one under 18 please." His last sentence came out in an almost perfect impression of his father, complete with the arm tucked in the jacket and the shake of his head. "Then there's the Mikus Charitable Foundation stuff, but Mom does most of those speeches."

"And you have to go to all of them?"

Maya's hips shifted to the beat of the instrumental pop song playing through the speakers on stage, her hip popping against her best friend's. "Do  _not_  knock the BTY party," she said seriously, waving her finger in his general direction.

"And we got to spend at week at the Minkus place after Family Fun day last year," Riley agreed.

"There may be moments of stuffy businessy stuff," Maya's mouth quirked and she shrugged. "But the parties are kind of epic."

Farkle bowed slighty, nodding to where Isadora Smackle was making her way through the crowd in a strapless calf length cocktail dress with thick lace accents. "And I get the added benefit of being able to surround myself with beautiful women."

Watching Smackle skirt past her, Maya smirked. "We're going to 'fashionably late' this evening are we?"

"If a girl looks like this when she gets here," Farkle took his date's hand, lifting it up to drop a kiss to her knuckles. "Who gives a damn if she's late."

There was a low 'ohhh' coming from the two girls by the step, and Riley waved in the general direction of her date, Lucas, and Josh. "It seems you've all been outclassed." Maya caught Lucas's eye, and when he winked, she blushed. "Why, oh why could we not have chosen to date Farkle?"

"If you had tried," Isadora set her clutch down at the place setting next to where Farkle had left his suit jacket. "I would have been forced to atomize your entire existence."

"Yeah," Maya hopped off of her step and moved closer to her date. "Somehow that's no less scary when she's in formal wear."

Lucas dropped a kiss to Maya's forehead, relieving the waiter that seemed to be hovering just outside the group of a champagne flute garnished with pomegranate seeds and a thin slice of pear. A Pilsner flute was set on the table at his elbow, and the Texan nodded his thanks. "I'll protect you." Josh watched him whisper to the blonde, handing her the Bellini.

"We're staying in the Minkus guest suite tonight," Maya popped up and kissed him on the nose. While Riley clapped encouragingly, Josh threw a questioning look to Farkle. "You're already getting laid."

"Are they always like this?"

With Farkle having a quick conversation with his mother, it was Will that answered him. "Not at all," he leaned over the railing in order to converse without having to be loud. "We usually get one or two public displays and a hell of a lot of banter." Lucas had talked Maya into heading back to their table, and Riley fluffed the skirt of Smackle's dress one more time, helping her check her make-up before the darker haired girl took her date's hand and was led through the crowd.

"Duty calls!" Farkle called behind him. "Someone keep Maya away from my drink."

"Spoilsport!" Maya shouted back, reaching over and taking a tentative sip of whatever was in Farkle's glass. She made a face, dropping the glass back down to the table with a groan. "Seriously?"

"If everyone could be seated please?" The voice belonged to the woman Josh would forever refer to as 'assistant number one,' and she had ditched the clipboard in favor of a handheld wireless microphone. Everyone slid into their seats, minus the Minkus's – both Farkle and Imogen had taken their plus ones up to the stage with them – and Riley and Maya seemed to be content perched on their dates laps to her better views. "Thank you. It is my esteemed privilege to present to you, a man that needs no introduction: Mister Stuart Minkus."

Applause erupted and Josh watched Stuart kiss the twins on the forehead on his way up the stage, his wife following closely after. She stood off to the side, just at the top of the steps, as Stuart took the mic from his assistant, whispering something to her before moving to the center of the stage.

"Good evening ladies and gentlemen," Stuart Minkus held the microphone in one hand and a drink in the other, looking every bit the Fortune 500 CEO that he was. Where Farkle and his sister were on the causal side of formal, in a three-piece suit and cocktail dress respectively, the patriarch was decked out in full black tie. "Now I promised my kids that this speech was going to be short this year. Apparently dinner doesn't start until I step off the stage." From her place at the side of the stage, Imogen shook her head and muttered something about how telling everyone that isn't making his speech shorter. "Sorry sweetie." The rest of the room just laughed.

"I had an entire speech ready for this evening, full of references to stock prices, and talks of how the year we're leaving has been amazing to us all." Jennifer smiled indulgingly as if she's the one that had written the speech that Stuart was lamenting the loss of.

He didn't need Riley's voice behind him to say that it was entirely possibly that she had.

"I scrapped it all before even getting in the car tonight." There was a nervous chuckle around the room, and Josh watched Stuart's smile turn contemplative. "While getting ready for this evening, one of my eldest son's friends quoted T.S. Eliot in the middle of my kitchen." The laugh was behind him now, and Josh didn't even think about turning around. "And I thought if she could make sense of the last year of her life with two sentences, why can't the rest of us.

"'For last year's words belong to last years language, and next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning.'" He raised his wine glass, wrapping his free hand around his wife and pulling her closer to him. "May we all have a bright and prosperous 2019, filled with only good blessings! Happy New Year!"

The room erupted in cheers and 'hear hears' and Stuart could be heard dimly over the sound system as the turned to his daughter and kissed her forehead. "Was that quick enough for you sweetie?"

* * *

"Where's your date?"

Josh turned, just in time to see Maya hop up next to him. He'd wandered out onto the terrace early, hoping to grab one of the tables to make it easier to watch the fireworks, and Maya set her glass down beside the votive and readjusted her double-breasted shearling coat. She hadn't buttoned the coat, and the ends still seemed to flap no matter how many times she puled them together.

"Bathroom," Josh pointed vaguely in the direction of the hallway inside Sixtyfive and Maya nodded understandingly.

"Five minutes to midnight and she's braving the line." Maya whistled, her eyes scanning the top of the city. Briefly his niece's voice skittered through his head reminding him that this was the first time Maya had been this high up in the city.

Then he snapped back to what Maya had just said. "There's a line?"

"There are three hundred people here," her laugh was almost contagious, and she took a quick sip of her Bellini. "Even if only half of them are women, there's most definitely a line to the ladies room."

Well, that most definitely sucked.

Still, Christian and Allison were supposed to be following him out, the promise of fireworks from the Hudson, East River, and Central Park being too good to pass up. And he could always catch a kiss later in the evening. El was already planning on staying with them so she didn't have to deal with campus security.

"Did you know that German folklore says that the first person you encounter in a new year, and how the interaction goes, is supposed to set the tone for the rest of the year?" Maya had her back to the city now, watching his face as she finished off her glass. She set it on the table to her left, "Your brother insists on telling us that  _every_  year."

"You can take the teacher out of school…" He had to admit the adage definitely fit with Cory. "He comes by it honestly, though, Feeny was all about how every day was an opportunity to learn something new." Josh remembered getting to middle school and realizing that his brother's favorite educator – and their next-door neighbor – was now his principal. While he didn't get the lectures that Cory and Shawn boasted of from their youth, he'd been forced to learn a thing or two when detention beckoned.

Maya nodded, crossing her arms against her chest and turning back to the cityscape. "The New Years kiss is about strengthening ties you want to preserve in the future."

The sentence seemed nonsequential, but one look to her eyes proved that she hadn't been sure what to say, so she just went back to her original train of thought. Her eyes caught something on the other side of the terrace, and he raised an eyebrow. "You trying to tell me you're invested in my New Years kiss?" He asked slowly.

The laugh that bubbled from her lips forced his smiled wider. "Do I look fourteen?" Tongue planted firmly in cheek, Maya reached a hand out taking a second champagne flute from Riley and seeming to fold the younger girl into her coat. Riley was in flats for this venture, so they seemed to be close to the same height now. "Where the hell is your coat, Pumpkin?"

He couldn't hear Riley's response, but marveled at how Maya handed the flute she had just received back off to Lucas – without looking at him or speaking – so she could wrap both arms around her best friend. Lucas took a step to the side after a moment, Will sidestepping him so he could drape Riley's oversized coat around her shoulders and pull her to him. Maya dropped a kiss to Riley's forehead before taking the flute back and randomly fist bumping Farkle, who had appeared on the other side of the table with his date and sister.

In the middle of a conversation with Smackle, where they seemed to be debating scientific terms for something that he didn't catch, Farkle took a quick sip of his drink and continued to gesticulate wildly, his left arm not moving as emphatically as his right. Lucas's phone had materialized at some point, and he and Riley were shouting greetings and 'Happy Early New Years' at the screen.

Maya checked her own phone; her smile fading somewhat when Josh realized that she had no messages. For a split second, Josh thought of trying to get her attention. Of anything that he could say or do to get the laughter back into her eyes. He was a firm believer that no one should ever be down while surrounded by friends.

"Brought you a drink." Christian handed him a champagne flute, steadying two others in his other hand for his date. "Where's El? Getting out here was a bitch."

"Bathroom." Josh caught Maya's eye, "I think she got caught in the line."

Allison nodded in understanding. "Hopefully she makes it before the fireworks start." From their spot, they would be able to easily make out the Hudson River and Central Park fireworks. They'd have to shift a little further to the right in order to clearly see the East River. "This view is  _amazing_!"

"One minute to midnight!" Farkle tucked the microphone into his suit jacket with the same stealth that he had pulled it out, and Riley almost shrieked.

"I wanna say something!" Riley practically shouted and Lucas bopped Maya on the nose with a pointed "No."

The blonde held her hands up in surrender. "I don't want it." She announced.

Farkle gave her an appreciative smile – after all, Maya was the only one that would actually pose a threat if she'd gotten it into her head to get the microphone – and picked his glass up from the table. "Any last minute resolutions?"

At the exact same time, Riley and Maya turned to each other, smiles bright. "Talk less!" They announced in unison, each wagging a finger at the other, "Smile more!"

"I'm gonna stop going to see musicals with you crazy people." Will's smile told the group that he was lying, horribly, but the girls giggled nonetheless.

The microphone was back out, and Farkle rotated his wrist to see his watch before turning it on. "Who's ready to start counting?" The crowd on the terrace - and it didn't amaze Josh that it seemed to be the younger crowd - started cheering. "TEN!"

The chant was taken up immediately, Riley and Smackle hopping to the countdown.

"SEVEN!"

Lucas slid past Will, holding both flutes and smirking down at the blonde. Josh couldn't help the grin on his own face when Maya's smile returned, accepting her glass and grabbing a hold of Lucas's tie.

She pulled Lucas down into a kiss even before the count hit 5, twining both arms around his neck and forcing him to brace one hand on the glass behind her. Riley clapped her hands and giggled, and Farkle just rolled his eyes and shook his head, a smile tugging at his lips. From what he had gathered, while they weren't shy about their arrangement, public displays of affection were few and far between for the blondes, only appearing during special occasions.

"THREE!"

Riley wrapped her arm around Josh's, noting his lack of date and determining that she was going to ensure that no one felt excluded.

"TWO!"

He and Christian bumped fists, the excitement seeming to multiply for something that happened every year.

"ONE!"

" _Happy New Year_!"

The entire terrace erupted into cheers and loud kisses, Christian and Allison no different. Josh turned to give them a second of privacy, thankful that the fireworks over Central Park had begun right as the clock struck the new day so he wouldn't be stuck desperately hoping that no one accused him of playing the voyeur.

To the other side of him, Maya tucked the top of her head into Lucas's chin, both of them seeming to whisper back and forth for a second.

He was vaguely aware of Lucas whispering 'go for it.' Before Maya released the taller boy, turning more fully to him.

The kiss she planted on him was simple and sweet, her lips off center, and landing on his cheek just as much as his lips. It lasted all of two seconds, and Maya's hand came up to brush her lip-gloss off of his cheek even as she pulled away. It was the same kind of kiss his niece was bestowing on Farkle on the other side of the table, and Will on Smackle. It meant nothing more than a handful of teenagers enjoying their last New Years as a cohesive unit. Her arms came up around his neck, and he was instantly aware of the cold crystal of her champagne flute pressing against the back of his neck as she breathed on his ear.

"Happy New Year."

Lucas's arms were around her waist again, and Maya stepped back into him with a twinkle in her eye.

"I changed my mind." Josh watched her eyebrow rise as she took a sip of her drink, Lucas turning to accept felicitations from Riley and Will. "Suddenly you look  _very_  fourteen."

Maya's wink caught him off guard as she wrapped her arms around her best friend and she and Riley shared a quick peck. Ellie appeared then, apologizing about being unable to get through the crowd in time and pulling him in for a quick kiss. When he tucked her into space in front of him to watch the fireworks, he swore he could still her the petite blonde laughing beside him.


	8. Part V: Barely Legal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why was everyone acting like he had forgotten his girlfriend’s birthday? She’s his niece’s best friend. And him forgetting her birthday would not have been the end of the world.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows» Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 5,132  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

 

The start of classes was always rough on Josh, making sure he had the required equipment and texts and starting his outlining. And he'd added a few extra hours a week on his internship, joining the project team for the next of New York City's zero energy schools. The responsibility was amazing, and it gave him a leg up on the new interns – as well as added to his surety that he was up for an actual position in the company after he graduated.

The downside was that it left very little time for family and friends.

Which was why he was completely blindsided when Riley showed up unannounced at his cubicle at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill on a Wednesday night, hair pulled into a neat French twist, and perfect woolen coat covering a simple purple dress.

"Are you allowed up here?" He asked slowly, running a hand through his hair. He'd never actually had visitors in the building, and where he'd always used his employee id, Josh had no idea how to actually obtain a visitor's pass. When Riley blinked, he sat up a little taller, "Did they let you up here?"

Taking in the disheveled – and apparently under-caffeinated – creature before her, Riley just sighed. "We're gonna be late," she informed him, reaching up to take the pencil from his fingers.

"Late?"

He was pulled from his seat abruptly, Riley running a hand through his hair in a vague attempt to straighten it. "You forgot."

Josh honestly couldn't remember what it was that they could have told him that he would have forgotten. And that in and of itself was most likely the problem. "Obviously," he said after a moment, batting her hands away from his sweater. While he didn't think that he was dressed as nicely as she was, he was still required to dress professionally as an intern. He didn't think he looked too shabby in his light blue oxford and his black argyle sweater. He'd actually worn slacks that day instead of his dark wash jeans. He scribbled what he was researching on a sticky note before attaching it to his desktop screen – because he was fairly certain that Riley wasn't about to let him stay there since she'd come all the way to Wall Street to collect him, "What did I forget?"

"It's the sixteenth," Riley was looking at him expectantly, grabbing for his double-breasted pea coat from the hook on the wall.

The sixteenth of January.

He had missed a text from his father earlier; saying that they had made it to Cory's to start their long holiday weekend. A weekend that they had added an extra day to for a very specific reason.

His desk drawer opened, and Josh grabbed his keys and his cellphone, his eyes landing on the wrapped box sitting in his desk tray.

The sixteenth of January.

Maya's birthday.

"Fuck."

Riley just smiled. Apparently she knew that he would figure it out all on his own. "Dinner at L'Artusi," she supplied instead. "We're supposed to be there at seven thirty." She held up her phone so he could see that it was ten after seven.

They were most certainly going to be late.

"I am so sorry," he started, calculating the time it would take to get to the subway, on the 1 and then up to Tenth Street. Yeah, they definitely weren't going to make it that way. He reached for the phone at his cubicle as he shoved his keys and his wallet in his pocket. "Hey Tony, it's Josh from SOM." Taking his jacket from her hands, Josh threw that on too, pulling his scarf from the hanger and slinging his satchel over his shoulder. "Would you mind getting Stu to grab a cab for me?" He waited a beat, dropping the neatly wrapped package into the flap of his satchel. "Thanks, man."

The phone dropped to the cradle, and Josh shut off his monitor.

"Text your dad," he ordered as they made their way to the elevator. "Tell him you found me, and it's my fault you're late."

"Katy's bringing Maya to the restaurant at quarter till," Riley was still doing as she was asked. Cory had known that Josh had most likely forgotten. With the exception of a few texts, and a rushed dinner the week before, they hadn't really heard from Josh since the semester started, which meant that the youngest Matthews had put his blinders on – something that even Cory had been accused of when he had a goal ahead of him. "We've got a little time."

"We're still taking the cab," Josh decided, holding the door open for Riley to slip out into the night. He guessed he could be thankful that it was Riley that had come for him – even if he was incredibly curious as to why his brother allowed his seventeen-year-old daughter to ride both the E and the 2 trains alone after dark.

Had he voiced that sentiment, Riley's answer would have been a straight ' Maya does it all the time.'

That didn't make him feel better either.

Josh came back to himself as he thanked the older gentleman at the door before sliding into the back seat of the cab behind Riley. "L'Artusi," he heard Riley call up to the cabbie. "228 West Tenth, please?"

"You're so polite," Josh had to bite back his laugh.

"And you're apparently an idiot." Riley gestured to his bag with one of the oddest smiles on her face. "You had absolutely no idea what day it was, but you didn't forget to get Maya a present?"

There was the briefest of moments when Josh wondered if he could possibly roll out of the cab while it was moving down FDR Drive. It was highly possible that it would make him even later – and he couldn't remember if he had his laptop in his bag or just his tablet. It wouldn't be a good thing for either of them. Was it really a good idea to bring up the fact that he'd had Maya's gift since before New Years?

"To be fair," he started carefully. "Me not remembering Maya's birthday had nothing to do with her birthday." Even the cabbie snorted. Why was everyone acting like he had forgotten his girlfriend's birthday? She's his niece's best friend. And him forgetting her birthday would not have been the end of the world. "When you showed up, I barely knew what day of the week it was." When Riley nodded, he allowed himself to smile. "Once you told me today was the sixteenth, I  _knew_  it was Maya's birthday."

Readjusting her collar, Riley laughed. "You don't get brownie points for that, Josh."

The cabbie seemed to nod in agreement.

He didn't answer her, choosing instead to watch the city roll by.

Before he'd gone and gotten so swamped with work and school he had actually been looking forward to this evening. It was the first time he had seen his parents since Christmas, and this was the first dinner that he was going to have with his brother in he new year that didn't end with him getting a frantic phone call from his roommate about how their Structural Design TA posted in the class's online discussion board that there was going to be a quiz the next morning in class.

Thankfully enough he had already worked his schedule out so he could take the morning off to spend time with his parents – although he wasn't quite sure what he was going to be doing with them – therefore, he didn't have to worry about that sort of thing happening this time.

And suddenly he realized that there were two more Matthews waiting for him at the restaurant to tease him mercilessly over the fact that he had lost track of time.

Yay.

"You never told me how Katy and Shawn managed to get the wine room at L'Artusi reserved for Maya's birthday," he seemed to have cut Riley off midsentence, but she didn't look to be bothered by that.

Her eyes didn't leave her phone. "Dad called Mr. Minkus to invite them to celebrate with us last month, so he could have a headcount and figure out a restaurant." She paused and snapped a quick selfie, texting it to whoever had garnered so much of her attention. "When Dad mentioned that he hadn't picked a place yet, Mrs. Bassett-Minkus kind of took over." She shrugged as if to say that this kind of benevolence happened all the time where Maya was concerned, and spared another glance to her phone.

"Maya only turns eighteen once," he supposed aloud.

"For Lucas's birthday, we had home plate tickets to the Yankees," Riley offered helpfully.

Not for the first time in his life, Josh wondered just how rich the Minkus's were.

And it made him a little sad for the fact that Riley's birthday was in December, and they would all be off to college by then. He might have to mention to Maya that they do something to celebrate when she comes back for Christmas break.

"So where's your present?"

Riley bounced in the seat now, turning to fully face her uncle. "Dad's bringing them," she almost squealed. "I didn't want to have to juggle on the subway."

"Might have made some decent money." Josh watched Riley smile again and she tucked her phone in her jacket. "What did you get her?"

"I found this awesome multi-compartment messenger bag for her to carry her art supplies in." Josh only hoped that Maya was as excited as Riley was about the find. "She's been complaining  _forever_  about how she hated bringing her supplies to school because she doesn't like risking getting her books dirty or ruining her homework – which she actually  _does_  now - so it's got all sorts of little bins and bags to separate everything. Now she doesn't have to worry about it!" The cab jerked to a stop at a light, and he could feel Riley vibrating now. "And I've already stocked it with Sanden brushes, so she doesn't have to worry about getting new brushes for school."

Even working with designers and artists, Josh had absolutely no idea what made Sanden brushes better than whatever it was that someone could buy at an art store, not that he'd ever tell any of them that. He couldn't fault Riley's joy over picking out something that Maya had obviously spent a lot of time thinking about.

After all, that was where his gift idea had come from.

"Katy got her a new easel," Riley pulled her phone from her pocket and scrolled through the pictures. Then the smart device was shoved into his face, picture of a wooden easel on casters snapping into focus. It was huge, almost as tall as the girl receiving it – standing in the photo in her plaid pajama pants and the NYU hoodie that he had bought her for Christmas. "I don't know what Shawn got her," was it accurate to describe her tone as regretful? Josh had to bite back a laugh over the fact that he honestly believed Riley was happier about Maya's birthday than the blonde was.

"I'm sure you'll find out soon enough," the cab was rolling up to the curb now, flipping on its lights and punching the meter. Josh didn't hesitate to pull his wallet from his pocket, flipping it open and retrieving two bills. "Keep the change."

The cabbie smiled and tipped his hat. "Tell your friend 'happy birthday.'" He called as the young adults climbed from the car.

Josh took a deep breath as he readjusted his bag, standing still so Riley could use him to steady herself as she fixed a high-heeled shoe.

"We were starting to worry about you, son." Alan Matthews was leaning against the building with Shawn, just watching the people mill about on the busy sidewalk.

"Yeah," he didn't have to worry about appearing sheepish, blush rising on his cheeks. "Sorry about that."

His father just pulled him into a hug, kissing the top of his head. "You wouldn't be a Matthews if you had excellent time management skills."

"That  _does_  mean you're not cooler than me, yet." Shawn clapped him on the shoulder, taking in his appearance. "Although we can't accuse you of not trying to look the part."

"It's what he wore to work." Riley had hopped up next to them now, sliding her arms around her grandfather's waist to get the same treatment. His kiss landed on her cheek, and she beamed at the men around her. "I didn't even have to text dad to bring the emergency shirt."

It was up until this point that Josh thought that it hadn't been a big thing that he had gotten caught up in work. "There was an 'emergency shirt?'"

Shawn tried not to smile as he nodded.

"You realize that if Katy sees all of us out here and we ruin the surprise," Lucas stepped up to the group from the other side of the sidewalk, brow furrowed. "She's going to kick our asses."

Josh couldn't help but to point at the blonde. "Hah!" All eyes turned to him. "I'm not the only late one."

There was a moment before Lucas actually laughed. "I've been here for twenty minutes," he told them. "Riley sent me down the street when she decided that Maya needed birthday flowers en route." His arm came up, winter bouquet filled with oriental lilies and amaryllis waving around. "I refused to buy roses." Riley's mouth was open and Lucas lifted a finger to pop it closed. "It's clichéd and ridiculous and Maya would hate it."

"Have I ever told you how annoying it is that Maya talks to you too?" The brunette was trying to pout, and failing miserably. She was too caught up with being excited that Lucas had put some thought into the flowers.

Opening his mouth to snap back an answer, and upon seeing Shawn's glare, Lucas actually thought better of it. "You'll get over it," he decided instead, casting a quick look down the street. "Now can we get inside before Maya's mom has to plot our deaths?"

"When did you become afraid of Katy Hart?" Josh stopped just inside the door to help Riley with her jacket, slinging it over his arm so she was hands-free.

The teen seemed to allow Alan and Shawn to get further ahead of them before he opened his mouth to answer, flowers coming up to cover his lips. "About the time that Katy caught me wandering around her living room in my boxers." He wasn't sure if Katy had shared that tidbit with the other parents in the group, but he liked the thought of keeping Shawn from actively trying to murder him just a bit longer.

He didn't even bother to elaborate further.

The decision whether to laugh at the kid or attempt apathy was robbed from him by their arrival on the mezzanine, and the loud shriek from his mother announcing it.

"My brother," Cory made it to him first, pulling him into a sideways hug.

"My brother."

But Amy wouldn't be deterred, racing over to wrap her arms around her youngest. "You look so dashing," she kept complimenting him even as she was readjusting his clothing. "And this shirt is very nice, Joshua, did you pick it out yourself?"

"Stole it off a homeless man on 6th," Josh made it away from his mother just long enough to pull his satchel over his head and shrug off his coat, handing them both to the waiting attendant. The man moved around the open area, hanging the jacket on a rack and setting the bag down on a chair next to it.

Shawn matched him mothers appalled glare. "Not the one with the bum knee," he covered his mouth with the hand not holding his beer. "I was going to grab his shoes next week."

Amy simply smacked them both. "My boys are  _very_  funny." She laughed anyway, glad to see that all of the men she had raised were still as close as they had been.

Across the room, another waiter moved up to Mr. Minkus, announcing that the guests of honor had arrived. "I don't think I have to say 'places everyone.'" From the other side of the curtain separating the mezzanine from the rest of the restaurant, Josh could hear Katy telling Maya that she'd gotten the only reservation available.

"Let's not kid ourselves," Maya's voice carried even over the hum of the patrons below them. Heels were clacking on the metal steps, and Josh smiled at the annoyance in her voice. "The first person to jump out and yell 'surprise' is getting decked."

The curtain was pushed back then, and the collective that was Maya's friends and family immediately did their duty and called out 'happy birthday!'

"No one said 'surprise'," Katy was telling her daughter, as Maya's entire face contorted in joy. It was entirely possible that she had been expecting Shawn, and the local Matthews clan – and possibly Farkle and Lucas – but the Amy and Alan had been a surprise, as well as Mr. and Mrs. Minkus. "Happy birthday, baby."

She still hadn't recovered her voice when Shawn walked up to the ladies, wrapping both arms around Maya. "Happy eighteen, kiddo."

"You didn't have to do this," she whispered into Shawn's shoulder. It was entirely possible that a birthday dinner had been her mother's idea, and the Matthews were invited because they were the Matthews. But getting a space like this, and inviting the extended Matthews family, and her friends were all Shawn – and maybe a dash of Cory. "You really didn't have to do this."

"You only turn eighteen once," Shawn kissed her temple, turning her around so Riley could latch on to her back. "And you deserve this."

Anything she said next was overridden by a classic Riley Matthews squeal. "Were you surprised?" She asked her best friend, pulling off her jacket and handing it to the waiter. "Tell me you were surprised!"

"There was surprise," Maya conceded, maneuvering herself in Riley's arms so she was now facing her friend. "Thank you, pumpkin."

Steering her toward the wine room, where the table had been set for dinner, Riley finally released her hold on her friend. "You're eighteen!"

"Can you say that one a little louder?" Maya had found Farkle in the crowd now, wrapping her arms around him. "I don't think that everyone downstairs was aware that this was a party."

"Well they should get on it." Mindful of her knee high skirt, Lucas wrapped one arm around her hips, lifting her off the floor. "We're celebrating here."

"Lucas Tristan!" Maya's voice carried, and Josh noted that every adult in the room turned to their direction. "Short people don't like heights!"

Shawn shouted something unintelligible as a second waiter arrived to grab the rest of the drink orders, and Stewart Minkus began to shuffle everyone into the wine room to their seats. Lucas shifted his weight, pulling Maya into his arms in the classic bridal carry before plopping her down into the chair at the middle of the table. Riley on one side, Lucas on the other, and Josh was surprised when he was ushered to the seat across from her, sandwiched between Farkle and Zay.

Dinner was a blur of food and laughter and stories of the fantastic five and their various misadventures. They all laughed over Zay throwing up just hours before it was time to prepare for the New Years Eve party, and the wreck that was eighth grade – love triangles, poor Charlie Gardner, and all. In turn, Stewart Minkus provided a bit of honest commentary of his experience in school, and what he hoped they would be able to share in their journey to college in the fall.

Maya's desert did not come with a chorus of 'Happy Birthday.' It was due in large part to the fact that she refused to give up her steak knife, and almost physically threatened her best friend if she thought about trying it. That was not to say that dessert didn't come. Maya received her hazelnut chocolate torta with great ceremony, taking her first bite before anyone else was allowed to look at theirs.

She also ate the bulk of Lucas's roasted pear gingerbread cake, but no one really paid that much attention anyway.

"Can we open presents now?"

Riley had physically been bouncing since the dessert plates had been collected. It had been bad enough that presents had been banned from the wine room and there was a small pile in the mezzanine just waiting to be opened.

"I don't need any presents," Maya shifted so the waitress could refill her water glass. "Seriously guys, dinner was amazing enough."

"So that means I can return it for my money back?" Shawn was already on his feet, making his way across the room to the pile, sliding his out from under Riley's oversized box and moving to put it near his jacket.

He didn't get too far, Maya practically tackling him for the package. "Well, if you've already spent the money," she rationalized, giving the brightly wrapped package a little shake.

The rest of the group started to move out of the wine room; their own glasses in hand. Josh caught his mother remarking to Katy at how great it was that Shawn had found a surrogate daughter in Maya, since they were never sure if he was actually going to settle down at all. There was a nervous cough after Amy asked if there was any chance that she and Shawn would give it another go; maybe have more kids.

"Because I really need to have to worry about putting more than one kid through college?" Shawn's arm was still wrapped around Maya's and he was trying very hard not to step on her.

"You're not even worrying about putting this one through college!" The teen piped up, dropped herself into the chair Riley was indicating.

There was a pause when Maya finally released him. "You realize that you eat out of my fridge at least three times a week, I paid for your last three canvases, and my guestroom is a lovely shade of purple?"

"Eh, quit yer bitchin'." She shook the box again for emphasis and smiled.

Cory couldn't repress a chuckle as Shawn sat down next to him, content annoyance written on his face. "If only she knew just what was in that box," he muttered to himself. "Shaking it around like that."

He had another minute and a half of muttering before both girls in the middle of the room let out a high-pitched squeal. "Holy shit, holy shit," Lucas's arm came out of nowhere to keep Maya from dropping the box, and Josh noted how none of the parents had said a thing about her language. She repeated the words at least half a dozen more times before taking the box back, holding it up for the room to see. "It's a Cintiq!" she waved the box at her mother, "He got me a Cintiq!"

"I'm now thankful that as a New Yorker, Maya'll never need a car." The look Katy threw Shawn was playful, and even a little grateful, and Shawn accepted it with a wink.

"There's a stand already on your desk at my place," he told the bouncing blonde, trying to find a way to thank Lucas for taking a hold of the box again and actually sliding it under a chair. "A buddy of mine's an adjunct in the art department at NYU and he said that there's an emphasis on digital creativity when you're studying general art." Amy just looked impressed that he had taken time to think about it. "I figured this way you could get some practice in before college started."

"She hasn't even gotten an acceptance letter yet," Alan added carefully.

Shawn shook his head, watching Maya reach for a gift bag. "She will."

Then there was the flurry of paper.

Maya received a handful of gift cards - which Zay refused to apologize for; girl was damn hard to shop for – and a set of mugs labeled 'brush water' and 'not brush water.' There was a large tub of Artguard, because Will was practically clueless as well, which went over just as well as her new supplies bag from Riley, and an oil painting cube set from the older Matthews clan. Farkle had gotten her a new pair of headphones, 'to replace the ones you keep taping together,' and his parents had gotten her a new iPod to go with it.

She'd unwrapped the small box from Lucas with a confused brow raised. He had already given her the flowers, and she'd opened a present first thing that morning with a new leather bound sketch journal. "It's not ticking."

"For once in our friendship could you just accept that I bought you something nice without question?" The blonde was on the floor in front of her again, a place that had proved dangerous with Maya bouncing up and down to hug gift givers and squeal over boxes. "I actually spent a lot of time tracking this down."

"You want a cookie?" The comment slid out even as Maya was popping open the box, her words dying off as she saw the pendant nestled in the box. "It's a dime," she said, pulling the coin, and the chain attached to it out of the box.

"Look at the date."

Maya spun the dime, holding the front with her finger. "It's a dime that's as old as I am." She sputtered for a moment, trying to recall a time when this particular increment of money was significant to them.

He pulled himself off the floor then, reaching to take the chain from her. "Once upon a time, there was a girl who used to use her own form of measurement for how attractive someone was." His voice was low, and Josh actually had to be thankful that he was seated in closer than the rest of the adults so he could actually hear it. "And since you seemed intent to give me a ten, I thought it was high time that I returned the favor."

If they weren't in a room full of parents, Josh actually thought that Maya would kiss him. Instead, she just seemed to nod. "Boing."

"Boing," Lucas confirmed.

"Last present!" Riley was on the other side of the room now, far away from where the present pile had originally been, and it wasn't until she dropped the flap closed did Josh realize that she had pulled his small box out of his satchel and was bouncing her way back.

Maya did him the courtesy of not pretending that it was ticking or trying to guess what was inside before sliding the seam open with a nail and ripping the paper off. The Pandora box practically gave away what was inside, but he watched her breath hitch all the same.

"I know how pissed you were when yours broke on Boxing Day." Cory and Topanga had taken him and Maya along when the family had gone ice-skating in Central Park the day after Christmas, citing that the kids needed to get out of the house before someone died horribly. He didn't remember Maya falling, or taking Riley down with her, but he recalled the way her lips quirked when she realized that she'd landed on the clasp of the bracelet that her mother had given her for her sixteenth birthday.

He also remembered the look on her face when she casually mentioned that she didn't think she could afford to have it repaired, or get a new one.

There were two beads already on the silver bangle, the gold Essence creativity charm, and the hematite that symbolized courage, but the rest of it was bare, just awaiting her to add the charms from her previous bracelet to it when she got home.

"Thank you," Maya slid the bracelet onto her wrist beside the bangles she had worn for the evening, twisting it carefully to watch the new charms sparkle in the light. "I – " She stood, stepping over Riley and Lucas on her way across the room. "I didn't think you noticed."

Josh pulled her into a hug and smiled when her head rested on his shoulder. "A girl like you stops smiling for an afternoon," his voice was low. "I noticed. Happy birthday, Gorgeous."

"I should try making out with people on New Years."

Zay's voice carried out across the room as eyed the two jewelry boxes sitting next to him.

And just like that, the peace was shattered.

Cory's eyes were wide as they darted across the room. "Making out?" He looked to Riley and Will, seated a respectable distance away from each other, then to Lucas. "Who was making out?"

"No one," Josh claimed calmly, the very same moment that Riley shouted "Maya!"

"Two people!" The blonde in question couldn't even find it in her to look ashamed. She made her way back over to her chair with a calm grace that most of the room laughed at. "I kissed two people at midnight." Farkle counted it out then, pointing at last to Riley. "Three people! I kissed three people at midnight!"

"And only got two pieces of jewelry," Lucas tossed the Pandora box into the larger one that Riley's present had come in, to make it easier to transport. "Must not have been any good."

There was no way for him to dodge her foot now, and he winced on impact.

When Josh managed to catch her eye again, as Shawn was helping Katy load the boxes into the trunk of the waiting cab, he winked. He put his hand to his chin, thinking for a minute before nodding. "You weren't horrible."

It took Maya a moment to remember what he was talking about, and then she was smacking him with her free hand. " _I_  wasn't horrible?" She asked incredulously. " _I_  wasn't horrible?" Her hand grabbed his lapels, and Josh braced a hand on her hip to keep her upright. "I want a do-over!"

"No!" Cory seemed to pop up out of nowhere, shoving a hand between his brother and his daughter's best friend. "No more kissing!"

Instead, Maya licked the back of Cory's hand, laughing as he squealed.

Josh pulled away after he was sure that Maya wasn't going to wind up on her ass on the sidewalk. "Maybe some other time," he promised, giving his brother one final hug before following his parents down the street.


	9. Part VI: Future So Bright

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 3,706  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later._ In this chapter you will also find the lyrics to One Direction's _ _Perfect.__ I don't own either of those.

* * *

When Maya receives her acceptance letter to NYU – almost a full month later than her friends - the Matthews' throw a party, because of course they do.

Josh is invited because it's a Saturday night, and he's already finished the bulk of his final papers and projects –his Architectural Criticism paper is currently being reviewed for grammatical errors by his lovely sister-in-law and will be submitted first thing Monday morning. He expects to be told to meet them at _Topanga's_  and is pleasantly surprised when his brother announces that they will be partying under the stars on the roof of Shawn's loft in TriBeCa.

He isn't told whether or not he should bring a gift.

It's apparently a surprise party. When Josh arrives – promptly at quarter to eight as instructed – the guest of honor and his niece are nowhere to be seen. The other half of their quintet is sitting by the fire escape, the tallest straddling the cornice. There seems to be some debate with the parents on whether or not Riley should have been the one to guide Maya to the party, Katy stating easily that a bit more subterfuge may have been needed.

They shouldn't have been worried. Riley leads Maya onto the roof with a shout of "I could have sworn it was here somewhere!" before Maya quite literally trips over her best friends feet when she notices the three-dozen people circling the service elevator doors.

He watches Maya try not to get excited about the fact that her academic future is now set, and that she didn't turn out to be the complete failure that she had originally anticipated. It doesn't matter that she had received an invitation to the Institut Catholique de Paris summer program  _Painting through the Art Movements of Paris_  – complete with room and board - earlier in the year. Or that when Katy came up short for airfare Shawn donated some of his sky miles, as well as more than a few euros to her trip.

They didn't tell her that though, Katy had her pride, and the smile on Maya's face at her mother being able to provide this for her was more than enough for Shawn.

She makes her way through the crowd slowly, trying to evade hugs just as easily as she pulls others into them. Shawn's gotten two, because of course he does, and Maya seems to gravitate to Lucas and managed to keep her distance from him at the same time – you hear her tell him later it's because his arms are longer and that puts him closer to the food.

"Hey Gorgeous."

Josh makes his presence known before he actually steps up. He's not sure if it's because he knows for a fact that Maya doesn't like to be snuck up on, or because he wants to give her time to sufficiently pull away. They'd both been absolutely horrible at not being awkward since he all but promised her another kiss on her birthday. That and just last week Riley had loudly noted that in a little more than three months, they'll be the only two left in the city.

His brother tells him not to sweat it. Maya's been pulling back from everyone since the realization that the life she's had for eighteen years is drastically changing has come upon her. Even she and Lucas seem to be hovering between heartfelt admissions and blatant arguments.

Maya shrugs her jacket off as she turns to face him. "Josh."

He's been just "Josh" for a while now, which both relieves and saddens him. While he can't remember the exact date, 'Uncle Boing' died a relatively quick death shortly after the girls' freshman Homecoming experience. Maya's boyfriend at the time was the jealous type, and she claimed to have outgrown 'childish nicknames.' Amazingly enough poor young Friar will never be able to run from the superabundance of sobriquets that Maya has given him over the years. Josh is pretty sure she's already found a way to write "Huckleberry" on the tag of his letter jacket to be found at an embarrassingly later date.

There's a split second where he's not entirely sure how he's supposed to proceed. She's wide-eyed and unguarded and he's not used to that. "Congratulations." He opts instead of their usual banter, and when he reaches for her, she pulls back slightly.

The hug he gives and the hug she accepts are two completely different motions.

"Thanks!"

Before he can get another word in, she's swept away by Zay, who has declared that whatever tune is being blasted from the speakers is his 'jam.' They go on for at least two more songs, Farkle joining in at some point, and Josh admits that watching her unguarded is something that he could probably get used to.

"You're not dancing?"

At first he thinks that his niece is talking to him, so Josh turned to the sound of her voice, ready to play the 'old man' card to get out of bouncing around to whatever newest girl group to come out of X-Factor was blaring through the speakers. Then he realized that Riley has dropped herself to the cornice with Lucas, the young man watching his three friends bop around like lunatics with a sad smile on his face.

"Naw," the blonde ran a hand over his face, "She deserves to enjoy this."

"You don't think she'd enjoy it if you went over there?" Popping a potato chip in her mouth, Riley tried not to look incredulous.

Lucas shook his head. "I think this is something you should leave alone." There was tension in his shoulders, and either Riley didn't notice, or she didn't care. As much as Josh loved the fact that his niece was the perfect blend of his brother and sister-in-law, he wished she would hit the point where she realized that she couldn't fix everything.

She shook her head as if she was trying to figure out whether or not to actually listen to him. "I just think that you shouldn't give up just because she's being a little difficult."

"Riley," Lucas finally locked eyes with the brunette, shaking his head. "Leave it."

Josh was about to try to intervene – and do what, he wasn't quite sure – when Will shouted her name from the center of a Zay, Maya, and Farkle sandwich. Apparently they had caught him and wouldn't let them go. She took a minute, pointing to Lucas and shaking her head before the older boy reached over and lifted her off the cornice by her hips.

"Go," he told her sternly.

"You'll have to forgive her," Josh took another sip of his beer as he moved closer to the teen left alone. Lucas didn't look up, and Josh was okay with that. Hell, he had no idea what prompted him to start talking anyway. "The hero complex is genetic, and she's helpless against it."

Lucas actually smiled then. "It's annoying as hell to the rest of us." He allowed, taking a swig of his own beer. Katy had handed it to him when he'd gone to grab Maya her bottle of water, calmly telling him that she believed he deserved this after the last few weeks with her daughter. "So if you could filter that out for any future generations, the rest of us simple folk would appreciate it."

"You've been sleeping with Maya for what - a year and a half," it was the first time that anyone had probably said it aloud, and in public, and Lucas's face said that. "I don't think there's any part of your life that's  _simple_."

He accepted it with a nod, and a tip of his beer. "You're probably right."

They were quiet for a few moments, both watching the vivacious blonde bob and weave through the throngs of people. At present, Topanga and Katy were trying to teach her the Macarena. Poorly.

"I'm not used to seeing you two like this." Josh was the first to break the silence, still not looking at Lucas. When the blonde cocked an eyebrow, he pointed to the center of the roof. "Separate."

Lucas nodded. "I'm not used to being like this," he admitted softly. "I mean, even when she was dating her way through the lacrosse team, and I never knew which day a week she would jump me, she never pulled back." Another pause and Lucas wondered briefly if he could steal another beer. "She never stopped talking to me."

"It's because she knew you weren't going anywhere." Josh didn't know where the words came from, or why he was imparting them on Maya's – whatever it was they were calling it. "You were a physical presence, and even when you were thinking about sleeping with that exchange student," Lucas's eyes shot up and Josh smiled. "The walls in my brother's house are  _extremely_  thin." He offered. "And Riley must have demanded that Maya talk about it for as long as you were dating the girl."

Adriana, Lucas's brain supplied, from Portugal.

Josh nodded as if he'd actually spoken aloud. "The point is," he went on, "You were there." Lucas nodded. "Physically, emotionally, you did your homework together, and she didn't have to guess whether or not she was an important part of your life." Silence and Josh wasn't sure where it was that he was supposed to be giving advice. "And if she's gonna lose that, she wants it to be on her terms."

"I'm going away to college, not the moon." Lucas drained the last of his bottle; taking aim and launching it to the trash can that served as the recycle bin for this party. "Yeah I'm going to Cornell, and I won't be home every weekend, but she's not losing me."

"Have you told her that?"

"Of course." He was getting defensive now, and neither one were sure why.

But it didn't stop Josh from turning to actually face the man. "I mean, have you looked her right in the face and told her that you'll still be there for the three a.m. phone calls, and the days when she needs to run away from herself?"

"Since when have you become the expert on Maya Hart?"

Josh chuckled. "Since never," he decided. " _But_  I got a front row seat to my sister going through high school, and when you're related to Cory Matthews, you get a lot of advice on how to understand people even if you don't actually want it." He tilted his chin to his niece and Maya spinning each other around. "And Maya's been this Maya since she was about six." Or at least, he was almost nine when his parents sat him down and told him that Riley would be bringing her best friend with her that summer and that Josh was to be extra nice to the blonde. "And the best piece of advice that I ever got was to never assume anything."

Another moment of silence, this one not as awkward as the last.

He waited another beat before looking to his niece and her friends; Maya's smile still not reaching her eyes. "Isn't this the part where someone is supposed to make a grand gesture or something?"

And something clicked in Lucas's head. Josh could see it as the boy pulled out his phone and scrolled through one of the screens. "Yeah,' he allowed. "I think it is."

"Don't let her push you around," Josh called as Lucas started to stand. "You're bigger than she is."

"Yo Josh?" The dark-haired man looked up at the retreating teen, watching him smile from the edge of the dance floor. "Thanks, man. I'm glad that Maya'll still have someone here for her."

Josh just tipped his beer in the teens direction, nodding sagely.

He didn't have to wait long to see what Lucas's supposed grand gesture was, watching the man make a straight line to Cory and Shawn, who seemed to be monitoring – or maybe controlling – the music selection. The music was cut, because apparently the concept of subtlety was foreign when it came to teenage friendships, and the latest Pharell hit was replaced by the early sounds of an older pop number.

He had to admit though, the second the first verse started, and Maya realized whatever the new song was supposed to symbolize, the smile that struck her face could have lit the whole of Manhattan.

Lucas got to the bundle of his friends halfway through the bridge, and he sacrificed himself on the altar of dignity to pantomime singing to the short blonde. "I'm not good at making promises."

Shawn seemed to make it to his side of the roof right as Maya began shouting her own lyrics. He wasn't exactly up on One Direction, but Josh wasn't sure he liked where the song was going when the first bar of the chorus was 'If you like causing trouble up in hotel rooms'. "That was a nice thing you did."

The older man handed him another beer bottle, to replace the empty he seemed to be holding since before Lucas had stood, and Josh managed a sip before looking up at his brother's best friend. "I'm not sure I know what you're talking about."

"Riley's been trying to get that smile back on Maya's face for almost three weeks." She and Lucas had gotten their acceptance letters on the exact same day, and the group celebrated their further education, at Yale and Cornell respectively, with an impromptu dinner in SoHo. Neither Shawn nor Josh had been in attendance, but they both had front row seats following to Riley's meltdowns over the fact that Maya was pretending not to be bothered by something. "And you managed to do it with a handful of words and boy band."

"The hero complex is genetic," Josh found himself saying for the second time that night. "And unfortunately, I am helpless against it." Another swig and he whooped along when Will pulled Riley into a twirl, dipping her in the middle of the floor and kissing her nose.

Shawn nodded in agreement. "Effin' Matthews's," he coughed into his bottle. "I didn't want to make it a thing," he started. "I just wanted to let you know that Lucas isn't the only one who's glad that Maya'll have you here in town." He waited a beat. "Riley's only gonna be in New Haven, and there's no way in Hell Cory and I are gonna let her hide, but she needs someone her own age that understands her."

The sound that came out of Josh's mouth was the cross between a laugh and a cough, and he had to tap his sternum for a moment in order to not choke on the air.

The older man arched a brow.

"I think that's the first time someone has ever used 'own age' in the same sentence as Maya and me." He wasn't sure why it was important that he realized it. Hell, Josh wasn't sure why the age difference was even significant anymore.

It was a shame that Hunter had become well equipped to read Matthews men. "Three years looks a hell of a lot different this side of eighteen, doesn't it?"

Josh bit his lip, trying to decide exactly what Shawn was trying to imply. "I hate to break it to you, Shawn, but I stopped seeing the gap long before she crossed off that milestone." It was a sentence that probably would have sent his brother into an epileptic fit if he'd heard.

Six months ago, Shawn might have joined him.

But both of the men sitting on the periphery of the party knew that Josh wasn't speaking romantically, although Maya was a gorgeous girl with a big heart and an infectious attitude. It was just that they were a long way away from the girl that physically fell over herself when he walked into a room and demanded every second of his attention. If he were being honest with himself, Josh would have to admit that he had stopped seeing her as a kid years ago.

Taking a soft swig of his beer, Shawn patted the younger man on the knee. "But like I said," he stood, turning back to where his best friend was twirling his wife by the speakers. "I didn't want to make this a thing."

He was on his feet and a few steps away before Josh coughed again, calling his attention again. "I forgot to ask," he started. "Am I cooler than you yet?"

Shawn cast a look at the teens in the middle of the room, and then turned back to his best friend's brother. "You're getting there."

* * *

"Okay, this is ridiculous."

Three hours later and Josh had officially become the seventh wheel in an amazingly not awkward movie madness session in Shawn's living room.

The party had winded down shortly before eleven – because there were parents there, and no one really wanted to test Shawn's building's noise ordinance. But instead of calling it a night, Maya had begged Shawn for his permission to invade his home and continue this celebration with an all night movie-fest. Of course, Shawn had relented, after extorting the promise that Maya and Riley would clean up after everyone, and absolutely nothing would happen to his couch – there was also something about remembering to re-alphabetize his blu-rays when she was done with them, but that didn't seem important at the time – and Riley had latched herself onto her uncle's arm and pulled her down the stairs with them.

In a valiant display of maturity, and because Farkle accidently pointed out that Maya receiving her letter officially meant that in August their paths officially split for at least the next four years – Riley immediately dove for the cabinet under the mounted 60 inch, and the Disney collection that Shawn refused to admit that he had. They started with the Lion King, and Maya had commandeered Farkle and Will to procure snacks.

They were now twenty minutes into Aladdin, with Zay trying his damnedest to prove to everyone that he was every bit as kooky as the genie, when both Maya and Josh had gotten up to refresh their drinks, doing an odd little dance around each other in Shawn's open kitchen.

And for some odd reason, Josh thought that the best course of action was to play dumb. "What's ridiculous?"

"And now you're trying to be coy?" Maya dropped her mug on the counter and her hands immediately went to her hips.

Josh mimicked her position, smile fully in place. "I was actually going for adorably oblivious," he said with a laugh. When Maya's eyebrow rose, he dropped his arms. "And I still don't know what you think is ridiculous."

"This," Maya used one hand to indicate between the two of them. In the background, Zay was giving a rousing performance of Never Had a Friend Like Me. The only set of eyes that seemed to be aware that they were standing a little too close to each other in the kitchen belonged to Lucas. "Us," she reiterated. "Had I known that kissing you on New Years would give us five months of awkwardness, I would have just let you be that weird voyeur that creeped out the couples."

"In my defense, it wasn't the kiss that caused this." He stepped even closer to her, for no other reason than to allow him to lower his voice. "You didn't get weird until I said that you weren't horrible, and Cory interrupted your do-over."

She didn't deny it. If anything, Maya seemed a little surprised that he was so blunt about it. "Still," she shook her head, throwing a look to the living room. They weren't being watched anymore. Josh tried not to figure out why that was. "This awkwardness sucks, and it needs to stop."

He saluted, two fingers from his temple as he reached around her for the coffee pot.

"Seriously Matthews," Maya stepped to the right, and Josh found himself in a semi-awkward dance.

"I am being serious," Josh bumped her to the left so he could pour himself more coffee. "The kiss was impulsive, so was my comment. Neither one of us meant anything by it." Maya nodded along with him. "And you just made up with your boyfriend, so I think you need to get back in there and enjoy the movie with your friends."

She sputtered, not sure which one of his comments to attack first. "You're my friend too," Maya started. "And Lucas is not my boyfriend."

Again Josh was aware that they had the blonde's attention. "If that's what you need to tell yourself." He coughed, grabbing another bag of gummies from the counter and turning back to the living room.

"That wouldn't happen to be jealousy, would it?" She'd poured her own coffee, and grabbed the king sized Reese's cup that Shawn tried to hide in the freezer, before following after him.

"Absolutely not." The look on Josh's face was more amused than anything else. Then his brow furrowed. "You know I'm still too old for you, Maya."

She laughed, taking a sip of her coffee. "Just how many more miles do you really think you have left on that phrase?"

He ignored her, dropping himself on the reclined end piece of Shawn's leather sectional. The gummies opened louder than expected, and Riley popped up out of nowhere to grab a handful, biting one's head off before sliding back down onto the piles of blankets that served as her and Will's pallet. He would have to remember to lie to his brother in the morning about how Maya and Riley slept in her room.

Not even bothering to be subtle, Maya climbed over the arm of the couch that Josh was leaning against – instead of stepping over her best friend and Will, so Josh at least got to pretend she was being considerate – and settled herself in the corner piece, practically laying on top of poor Lucas. He didn't protest at all, just sliding her over to the left to make sure he could still see over the top of her head and reach his popcorn.

They shared a look over the top of blonde hair,

"You could always have my job." Lucas offered nowhere near helpfully.

Josh was suddenly glad that the only light in the room was what was emanating from the television set. It made it so much easier to appear nonchalant when Maya looked from the man she was using as her pillow to Josh and back again. She quirked one eyebrow, and then the other, and Josh did nothing more than shove a gummy bear into his mouth. It also gave him the opportunity to watch how Lucas managed to calm her nerves and give nothing away with a hand to the back of her neck.

Whatever it was between those two, Josh didn't want to be the guy that tried to actually date Maya in the future. It was entirely possible that they would go their separate romantic ways through college, and never find each other again – at least in that way – but those two had something that he couldn't quite name.

And how could someone compete with that?

He shook his head at last, his eyes catching Lucas's. "All yours, man." He saluted the teen with his mug before taking a sip.


	10. Part VII: I've Got This Friend

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 2,434  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in High School, Josh is at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

Despite the promise that he made to his brother and Shawn, it takes six weeks after orientation before he actually sees Maya again on campus.

It's a Delta Lambda Phi Saturday night kegger, which when he thinks about it isn't that different from their Friday night keggers, and Josh is only there to make sure that his roommate doesn't do anything that may result in Josh needing a new one. He's two seconds away from changing his mind and just leaving Austin there when he hears a giggle and he doesn't need to turn around to know whom it belongs to.

"There are two men who would literally have my balls if they knew you were here."

He sits down on the arm of the chair she's currently occupying, watching her blink -just once- before looking up at him from the rims of glasses that he didn't know she needed. "I won't tell if you won't." She gives her head a little shake, and he can't help but smile at her.

The room is in full-on party mode. The music is too loud, and the furniture has been pushed back to make room for dancing - if the grinding happening in the middle of the room constitutes dancing. She most likely just sat down a few moments ago, and he smiles at the fact that her cheeks are flushed. There's a couple making out on the long couch adjacent to her, but Maya doesn't seem to notice, or she's just better at actively ignoring them than he is.

"How many of those have you had?" It's the kind of question that his brother and Shawn would require him to ask.

Maya just laughs. "I've had one vodka cran." She informs him lightly, and Josh notes that her eyes are wide and her smile bright, and she doesn't look the least bit drunk. "This is just cran." When he tilts his head closer to her, she nods in the direction of the keg in the corner. "Sasha just broke up with her boyfriend. It's my job to make sure she goes back to her room alone."

"Your first college party and you're designatedly sober." He pushes a low whistle from between his teeth, and Maya rolls her eyes. "That has to suck for you."

"Who said this is my first college party?" The couple on the couch next to them has begun removing each other's clothes, and Maya can't help her snort now. Maybe she's not as good as he thought.

"You wanna get out of here?" There's half a second before he realizes exactly what he sounds like, and that it's the reason that she smiles despite her cocked eyebrow. "Outside or something." He clarifies quickly. "Where there's less noise."

She downs the rest of her solo cup, dropping it into another on the table before pulling herself to her feet. In the sea of miniskirts and strapless dresses, he's actually kind of amazed that he didn't notice her sooner in her dark wash jeans and oversized t-shirt falling off one shoulder. Her hair flips over her shoulder of its own accord. "Ya know," her eyes flit around the room, and he notices that her friend has moved on to beer pong. "I think I'm good here."

They make eye contact, her smile bright and teasing, before she moves gracefully through the sea of bodies to the other side of the room.

He had to admit that over the course of Maya and Riley's friendship, he had had the privilege of watching Maya in a variety of situations. There had been parties, interactions with street vendors, and even school social situations. The difference between then and now was the fact that almost all of the previous contained, at least, one of her longtime friends. There had been the odd time or two when it was just her and one of the parents – shopping with Cory for Riley's birthday present comes to mind, when the elder Matthews brother invited them both because what the hell was he supposed to buy his daughter when he refused to acknowledge that she was actually turning seventeen? – but they had never actually done anything alone.

Josh couldn't help the smile when she refused to play beer pong – on account that she had to actually remain sober enough to make decent life decisions – until her friend offered to drink for her. Then it was like a switch was flipped, and Maya was bouncing all over the place, flirting with the two guys on the other end of the table as they attempted their shots. She danced around the table in victory, hair falling out of its effortless updo.

When she was in high school, her laugher was contagious, her sarcasm easy. As a college student, able to redefine herself without Riley or Lucas or even Farkle, everything was amplified. She truly was in her element, and Josh understood that he had officially become the creepy guy at the party because he couldn't tear his eyes away from her taunting ecstasy.

And her energy never seemed to wane.

Two hours later Josh marveled as Maya put Sasha and another young woman that he didn't know in a cab – paying the cabbie and giving him the address so the second young woman wouldn't have to while juggling a drunk Sasha - and stepping back up onto the sidewalk. She runs a hand through her hair, pulling the pins out as she goes, before double checking her cash situation and leaning back against a lamppost.

"Feel like sharing a cab?" He's startled her. It doesn't take him looking directly at her for him to know it.

But being Maya Hart apparently has its benefits, and he watches as it takes her less than a second to straighten, and all traces of being tired are suddenly gone. "You do realize that this makes the third time you've hit on me tonight?"

"Second," Josh steps closer to her, shrugging off his jacket because it may be the end of September in New York City, but there's no way that the thin knitted shawl she called a sweater was keeping her any kind of warm. "Neither of which was intentional."

She takes the coat with a smile, slipping her arms through the sleeves and nodding appreciatively. "I'll make sure to remember that when I tell Riley about it later today." It was well past two in the morning, but her lip quirks with as much energy as she's ever had.

Josh steps into the street carefully, raising his hand in the universal signal for 'taxi.' "That mean you'll let me make sure you get home safely?" He asks without looking at her.

"It means I'll let you pay for a cab ride home." Maya doesn't need to tell him that she had originally just planned on taking the subway. She has her headphones stashed in her strapless bra, and pepper spray on the lanyard disguised as a necklace tucked into her shirt. She's lived in this city her entire life, and she's yet to find a reason to be afraid of it.

He catches her smile out of the corner of his eye, and Josh finds that he doesn't care if he's matching it when the next cab pulls up. "I'm doing this for Cory and Shawn." He announces as she pushes off the pole and joins him on the street, waiting patiently for him to open the door.

"Sure you are," she scoots all the way to the other side of the cab instead of forcing him to walk around, which he appreciates, before leaning forward to address the cabbie. "TriBeCa, 8 Beach."

"I could have sworn that we moved you into a Residence Hall before Orientation?" It's posed as a question because there are a lot of things that could have come up in six weeks. The possibility that her financial aid package turned out to not include room and board is a little too real. The last thing he wants to do is point out something bad.

Maya nods, pulling her phone out of her pocket. "The girl on the couch," she makes a vague gesture, and Josh shakes his head, clearly not understanding. "When you first found me." It all clicks then, as the image of the groping couple comes into focus. "My roommate Sarah." Maya's eyebrow seems to twitch and she shudders. "I'm not taking the chance of going home to that."

"So instead you're invading Shawn's?"

"He's in L.A. trying not to murder Jack's wife." Maya's not entirely sure what family occasion they're supposed to be celebrating, and she seems to convey that with a look. "And I can't remember if Mom's home this weekend or not." If she were home, Katy would still have the Sunday Matinée that she would need to be up at eight in the morning to prepare for. There was no way that Maya would want to chance screwing up her mother's sleep schedule.

They're stopped at a light when Josh realizes that he hadn't formulated a response yet. "How's NYU been treating you?"

There's that look again; the one that says that Maya's trying too damn hard not to be entertained by something. "It's great, Aunt Getrude!" Even the cabbie laughs, and Josh pushes his tongue to the roof of his mouth to keep from snapping back at her. "My profs aren't scary at all, and I get to paint all day!"

Josh just levels his eyes at her. He deserved that one.

"I'm taking mostly gen ed." Maya shifts her hips and turns, her boots suddenly on his side of the cab. "So other than the fact that I don't have to be up by 'oh-dear-God-is-that-an-actual-time' thirty to get to class, it's a bit like high school."

"And you get to bring your breakfast to lectures." Josh finished for her.

"Definite plus." There was a pause before Maya tilted her head. "Cory says you and Austin are getting a divorce."

Josh has had three serious girlfriends in his residency in New York City. None of them has managed to last more than a few months. Naturally Maya took this to mean that he was in the closet with his roommate. Or at least that's the myth she keeps insisting on.

The usual response consisted of Josh pointing out that jealously didn't look good on her.

Tonight, he just laughed.

"Austin's entertaining Palo Alto job offers," Josh corrected. He'd had the privilege of rooming with the same Information Technologies major for the last four years. It came with the perk of some decent free apps on his phone, but definitely sucked when graduation came around and you knew they were moving where the money was. "So I've started looking for apartments."

Maya tisks and shrugs as if to say 'it's the same thing.' "How's Amy feel about you not going back to Philly after graduation?"

It doesn't even seem to register anymore that Maya refers to his mother by her first name – even to her face. He's still willing to bet cash money that it never even occurred to her to call her something different. "Three out of four kids she's raised already have permanent residences here." He wasn't counting himself in that one, seeing as though he and Austin were still living in a New York University sponsored residence hall. He also didn't have to tell her that Shawn was amongst the kids that Amy claimed as her own. "And she's seen the contract I stand to get with SOM." With his class schedule thinning out in his last semester of college, being picked up as a full-time employee of the top architecture firm in the nation has become more of an actual prospect. The intern supervisor dropped the packet for applying for the junior architect position on his desk at the beginning of the school year, reminding him that the sooner he applies, the higher his chances. "Philly can't offer me that."

"There's a lot of things New York offers that you can't get in Philly." They'd come to a stop on her street now, and the cabbie pulled over as far as he could get to allow other cars to pass beside them.

Josh shifted his gaze to Maya's eyes, his lips quirking. "Is this you hitting on me now?"

There was a moment when neither one spoke before Josh reached behind him for the handle, signaling for the cabbie to wait as he let Maya out.

"I think you partied a little too hard tonight, Joshua." On the street, Maya shrugged out of his jacket, handing it back absently. "But I will thank you for your chivalry."

"I guess it'll have to do."

There really was no way that Josh could have known that Maya was going to pop up to kiss him on the cheek. Later he would chalk the fact that his hand was already on her hip to steady her to reflex.

Her smile was wide when she stepped back, running a hand through her hair and pulling the lanyard that contained her keys – all four of them each painted a different color – from her shirt.

"I'd invite you up, but-" her thumb is already pointing in the direction of the building even as her lip quirks. "You already said a 'thank you' was enough."

Their smiles match again, Josh understanding perfectly that she's making fun of him for the fact that he insisted on riding with her back to the apartment instead of just putting her in her own cab.

"That's number two." He reminds her, holding up the appropriate number of fingers.

Her hair flips over her shoulder, and Josh isn't sure when it got long enough to brush her elbows. "It's really not," she turns slightly, giving him a nod. "Besides, you're too old for me."

The last time that sentence was uttered, four months ago in the very apartment that Maya was now walking backwards toward, Josh knew that there was limited mileage on it. Maya's crush on him had waned – drastically – in the four years it took to get through high school, and other than harmless flirting, the issue had never actually been broached since that party her eighth grade year.

It didn't stop him from pausing when it left her lips, though, hand immediately popping up to rub his chin.

She was already in the building when he realized that he hadn't given her a response, and as he dropped himself back into the cab, his phone buzzed in his pocket.

 **TY again.**  Maya had signed it with the kissy face emoji.

After giving the address to his residency hall to the cabbie, Josh looked at his phone again.

**There's a place on Spring that does breakfast burritos all day. Best hangover food ever.**

**For your friend.**


	11. [Interlude] I've Got Friends On the Other Side

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two weeks after Maya had last spoken to Josh, and that was definitely not the sentence that she thought would break the silence.
> 
> Not that the silence had been imposed on purpose.
> 
> And now she was thinking too much for a Sunday morning.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 4,201  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are freshmen in college, Josh is a senior, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

**You were right about that place on Spring.**

Two weeks after Maya had last spoken to Josh, and that was definitely not the sentence that she thought would break the silence.

Not that the silence had been imposed on purpose.

And now she was thinking too much for a Sunday morning.

"There's no way your hangover caused that face." Lucas rolled over on the bed and took another sip of his coffee. He still wasn't dressed – which was something that would only bother Shawn if he was actually home – and Maya took a moment to marvel at the fact that the boy who hadn't managed to play a single college sport still managed to look so good. When the arm she didn't notice reached out to tap her chin, she jumped. "And you missed half of what I just said, didn't you?"

"If you have to ask that question," Maya kicked her shoes off and pulled her feet onto the bed with the rest of her body. "Then you are seriously losing your touch." She didn't even bother to point out that it was almost eleven A.M. on a Sunday, and she'd been up and about for the last hour and a half while he hadn't moved.

It was probably for the best that they hadn't told Riley that Lucas was driving in the day before. Less damage that way.

Then it occurred to her that it was entirely likely that she had posted the sideways image of the two empty shot glasses that she had taken last night.

She'd worry about that later.

Lucas reached for his boxers and laughed when Maya exaggeratedly pretended to cover her eyes with spread fingers. "What's got your brain going so hard?"

Her lip quirked. "I just realized that this is the first time I've talked to Josh since the Delta Lambda Phi thing."

"And this bothers you?" Lucas ran a hand through his hair, knowing the second he saw his Mama he was going to be headed down to Fleischman's faster than Maya could make fun of him for it. It was probably a good thing that she was under the impression that he was heading into town for his fall break a day later than he actually did as well.

But he was supposed to be focused on Maya, and her focus on Josh Matthews. Which wasn't a sentence that he had ever really had the privilege of thinking to himself before. "The Matthews 'Welcome Home Riley' thing is tonight; I'm sure Josh'll be there." He pulled on the jeans that he'd grabbed out of his weekend bag, leaving the button undone so he could shuffle to the bathroom for a shower.

Her phone chimed, and Maya rolled her eyes as she reached for it.

**Lemme guess, U went 'Around the World' with SLB last night?**

That had been an option that Maya had considered when Lucas told her that he was coming in early to get some time with her before the Riley arrived. Then she realized that Shawn had restocked the liquor cabinet before he took off for his trip upstate, and turning a Disney movie marathon into a drinking game was so much more satisfying than going Greek.

**Huckleberry got in early.**

She shook her head when she felt compelled to add.

**The RileyTown Express arrives today & we thought pregaming was best.**

"It doesn't bother me." Her tone was off, but Lucas decided to ignore it in favor of brushing his teeth. How Maya managed to be showered and dressed an hour and a half before actually waking him up – after drinking more than he did thank you very much – was a mystery to him. If she hadn't been on the quest for food that she didn't have to make herself, he might even say it was unnatural.

"You sure about that?" Lucas watched as she leaned back on the bed in order to catch his reflection in the bathroom mirror.

Her phone chirped again, this time the sound of pixie dust being scattered spreading through the room, and his eyes met hers. "I am not bothered by the fact that I haven't spoken to Josh in two weeks." She shook her head. Having male friends was exhausting sometimes. "Riley made it on the train," she pulled her lip between her teeth and shook her head, "it's just weird. I mean, I literally had a conversation with Farkle about teeth last week," and for the record, she still didn't know how that happened. "And I haven't texted Josh once."

The shower turned on as her phone vibrated, Lucas smiling slowly before turning and shedding his pants again. "Farkle probably started that conversation," he shouted over the water. It wasn't until he was actually in the shower that he realized that his toiletries were still in the bag in his truck. He'd really have to hope that no one noticed that he smelled like pumpkin icing until he could get into another shower. At least, it wouldn't be the first time. "How often do you actually see Josh?"

"Not very," Maya wandered into the bathroom, grabbing her toothbrush and turning the tap on to wet it as she applied paste. "He's on the A and S campus, and I'm on Steinhardt most of the time." There was also the fact that she was taking general education courses, and Josh was in the middle of his second to last semester majoring in both Environmental Policy and Management and Urban Design and Architecture Studies. And that was on top of his paid internship with Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill.

If it weren't for the fact that they both tended to appear at Thursday dinner at his brother's house – something Maya had managed to miss the last few weeks due to her Discrete Mathematics study group running long – she probably wouldn't see him at all.

Maya spit and rinsed and shook her head again. "It's just weird."

"Then change it." Yeah, he wasn't going to be able to mask the pumpkin smell. It didn't matter if he had his cologne in his bag or not. "We've got that dinner thing on Tuesday." Riley had demanded they do something 'just us kids' when arrangements were being made for their very first fall break as college students, and Maya pretty much just linked the brunette into her Google calendar and told her to have fun. "Why don't you see if he wants to join."

**Ur Sat night was definitely better than mine was.**

Josh's response was accompanied by a picture of his Urban Anthropology textbook resting against the stack of books that he had apparently collected for his senior thesis and a notebook with scribbles and doodles of architectural elements sharing the same space as a coffee cup. It was probably the same shot that he had posted on his Instagram – because apparently there was one Matthews that understood the hipster aesthetic – but Maya wasn't about to open her feed and check.

She'd just wind up absently scrolling anyway.

**My Sun morning is better than urs 2.**

It didn't need the three smiley faces that she sent afterward, but they made Maya feel better about the implied message.

"I don't know how to tell you," Maya allowed herself to sink into Lucas's arms when he came back into the room, jeans buttoned and towel hanging over his shoulder, pulling her into a hug and dropping his chin on the top of her head to read her phone. She tilted slightly, most likely giving him an excellent view of her cleavage while she tried to meet his eyes. "But you smell like girl."

Lucas snagged a quick kiss before reaching over to her bureau, grabbing a plain white shirt and his Cornell hoodie before kicking it closed. "I didn't need you to tell me this." He shrugged the shirt on and downed the rest of his coffee before turning back to her. "So, how much is it gonna cost me to pry your sudden interest in Josh Matthews out of you?"

Her eye roll was almost all he needed to see. "First of all," she turned herself on the bed in order to make sure she was facing him.

"It's not sudden," Lucas had to try not to smile at her as her mouth caught at his interruption. "Sorry, I keep forgetting you've been crushing on him for, like, six years."

"I have not!" Maya tossed one of her pillows in his general direction. "Two at the most," she corrected with a point. "And those two years are well behind me, thank you very much!" Lucas's laugh wasn't fooled though, and she shook her head as he dropped the pillow back onto the bed. With a grin like that, Maya was incredibly curious as to why he hadn't found someone up at Cornell to replace her. She dismissed the thought with a shake of her head. "As I recall, you were still hung up on Riley back then."

He deserved that one. Lucas wasn't even going to pretend that he didn't. "We weren't talking about me here." She wasn't listening, staring at him with a grin on her own face, yes, but definitely not listening. "And you're absolutely right, you are no longer crushing on Josh Matthews." He dropped back down onto the bed, his arms bracing on her legs. "You've been able to form complete sentences for years now."

"Screw you." Maya stood, sliding out from under Lucas's weight easily.

He gestured to the bed with a mischievous grin, earning another pillow to the face for his troubles.

* * *

"Peaches!"

Maya didn't even bother to close the front door behind herself, choosing instead to slide right into her best friend's arms. "Honey!"

She caught a glimpse of her best friend's father, vaguely gesturing to the door she had just come through with an exasperated grin. Corey hadn't really expected anything else for the first time the girls had gotten to see each other since Labor Day Weekend, which directly followed the week they moved Riley to New Haven in August. Even with Maya going to France that summer, it was honestly the longest the girls had been apart since they were children.

If Cory had to help heat the hallway for a few minutes in order to see their smiles, it was worth it.

There were a few more minutes of squealing, followed by an odd hug dance that included a hop or two before the girls separated, looking directly at each other before turning away and flipping their hair over their shoulder at the same time. "Stop it!"

"I love your skirt." Maya motioned for Riley to twirl, the hem of her tassel maxi skirt only rising slightly. "A new secondhand place opened up on Miller, and we are definitely hitting it while you're home." She finally backtracked to the door, kicking it closed and shrugging off her jacket. "How you doin' Matthews?"

"Not too bad," Cory held up a coffee cup with a smile. "Topanga bought that fruity stuff you told her about. If you're interested."

Maya's eyes were bright. "The chocolate raspberry?" She didn't even wait for Cory to nod. "Yes please!"

Riley followed her best friend into the kitchen, hopping up onto the counter next to the coffee maker while Maya poured them both mugs, one mixed with milk and sugar, the other with a dab of liquid creamer. She handed the first mug to her best friend. "Sip, and tell me that this isn't the best thing you've ever had in your mouth."

They shared a glance for a moment before Riley followed instructions and took a long sip. She nodded appreciatively, "Where's Lucas?"

So she  _did_  post that picture. She took another sip of her coffee to aid her in resisting the urge to check to see what caption she'd included with it. "On his way to Fleischman's," she shrugged, "I think." Another sip and she turned, dropping herself on the bench seat of the kitchen table. "Once he left the apartment, it was no longer in my hands."

The noise that came from Cory's mouth was most definitely unnatural, and Maya used her coffee cup to try to hide her laugh. "He was home before lunch," she noted quickly. "So Mama Friar is going to let him make an appearance for your 'Welcome Home' thing."

Riley's 'yay' was much less subdued due to her position on the counter, and the mug in her hands. But it was worth noting that it was just as enthusiastic. "We won't see Will until tomorrow, though." Her voice was soft, and she didn't have to tell Maya that it was because technically his break didn't begin until after his class the next day – in which the prof had anticipated truancy and scheduled an exam.

"That asshole!" There was a muffled response to Maya's outburst, and she couldn't help the laugh that came with Cory's reminder to watch her language. "He's coming to the thing on Tuesday though, right?"

It didn't take a moment before Riley started nodding emphatically. "And his parents have invited me to dinner tomorrow night."

"Which means I have to entertain myself for a while," her phone appeared then, inquiring about an invitation to the Friar's Monday night dinner while Riley was otherwise engaged. It was entirely possible that she wouldn't have gotten the smart remark back from Lucas if she hadn't put it exactly that way. "I'm sure I can manage."

"Carol Anne does enjoy feeding you." The clarification was most likely for her father's benefit, but Riley sent a warning look at her best friend anyway. While it was entertaining to watch the pained smile stay on her father's face Riley did just get home, and there was no reason waste all the innuendo at once.

Heels on wood announced Topanga, jacket over one arm, descending from the upper level. "Well, good afternoon stranger."

Maya waved the hand holding the coffee mug when her phone buzzed again.

**Mind asking my SIL if she needs me 2 bring anything 2 this shindig?**

The smile that crossed her face was emphatic. It wasn't supposed to be surprising that he knew she was already at the Matthew's place. "Josh wants to know if he needs to bring anything."

 **I didn't realize I was predictable.**  Maya typed back before she could stop herself.

There was definite side-eye from her best friend as Topanga seemed to consider Maya's statement. "Tell him I'll give him cab fare if he'll run by and grab some more sodas." Topanga was sliding on her jacket, flipping her hair from underneath the collar. "Auggie's at Dewy's, I'm going to grab the cake, please don't make your father's ears bleed talking about boys." She paused on their side of the table, dropping a kiss on each girl's forehead. "And if Stewarts asks, he and Jennifer don't need to bring nothing but themselves tonight." Topanga was halfway out the door before she backtracked. "And if any Sixpoint happens to make its way into the house tonight, please make sure that it arrives with more Solo cups so I can pretend that my girls are the sweet, innocent young ladies that I raised."

And she was gone.

 **T asked 4 more soda & cups.** Riley was over her shoulder now, and Maya was grateful that her keyboard was up so she couldn't see any of their earlier conversation. Her reasoning behind that relief was to be examined later. Preferably when she was alone. She skipped over the request for the alcohol in favor of asking for chocolate and Pixie Sticks. Despite her sometimes poor impulse control, Maya was perfectly capable of enjoying her first night with her best friend in seven weeks without being buzzed.

His response was almost instant, and Maya had to wonder if Matthews had been waiting for her to answer back.  **Yes to the soda, yes to the chocolate. How bad do you want the pixie sticks?**

Maya sent him back a picture of her pouting and shoved her phone back in her pocket. "So how are we going to entertain ourselves until party time?"

* * *

Ten minutes to midnight and Maya was definitely glad that she didn't have to worry about classes in the morning. She and Riley were curled up on the fire escape, watching the city that never slept in the cool October air.

"It's not as hard as I thought it would be." Riley was wrapped in the afghan that her Aunt Nebby had sent her as a graduation present. She took a sip of her hot chocolate and smiled. "College."

Maya nodded along with her best friend, tucking her feet back under her own blanket, draped over her legs because she had managed to steal Lucas's Cornell hoodie again during the party. "Speak for yourself Honey, I'm taking two math's next semester." It had more to do with her low SAT scores, which required her to take a remedial math in order to be able to take the required courses, but Maya liked to blame it on NYU.

"Yeah, but you're going to frat parties and study groups, and you don't have a single class that starts before ten." They both had Josh to thank for that bit of Freshman advice, promising them not nearly as many burnt out mornings if they picked the later blocks. The taller girl stretched her toes out to bump her best friend in the hip. "And all those artsy friends that blow up your Facebook feed."

"Says the latest Kappa Kappa Gamma pledge!" Maya may or may not have spilled a bit of her own hot chocolate on herself as she bumped Riley back. She licked her hand just in case. "Don't think I didn't notice that. Your dad's been complaining about the potential cost of Rush for the last week."

Yale Rush wasn't until the spring, but Riley had begun to look into sororities and extracurriculars the first day of orientation. Her mother said it would help her make friends and avoid homesickness. Maya had reminded her of all the fun she'd had in high school and how much free time she'd be able to create since she wasn't still on her cheerleading schedule. Riley was about to remind the blonde that she'd promised to at least join one club before the girl in question's phone buzzed, rattling the metal underneath them.

"Lucas or Josh?"

Maya grabbed for the device, thumbing it open and pulling up her texts. "Farkle." She turned the phone around for Riley to see, the image of their friend brushing his teeth dominating the screen. "One of my profs has an exhibit at the Whitney that I wanted to check out, and since you're with Will tomorrow, he offered to go with." She took a quick picture of her and Riley's mugs and set the phone back down. "You said you didn't want to go."

"It's fine," and it was because she needed some time with her boyfriend, and like her, Farkle was only in town for a week before he had to return to Stanford and the challenging world of academia.

It was her tone that worried Maya, who pushed her phone and mug further out of the way so she could squeeze up to her best friend. "You and I have the mani pedi's on Tuesday, and the Hepburn movie fest at the student union Friday afternoon." Her phone seemed to buzz in agreement, and Maya seemed to not notice it.

Riley shook her head. "Can I ask you something?"

Draping her blanket over her best friend's feet, Maya nodded. "Of course you can."

"How do you handle it?" There wasn't a subject in that sentence, and Riley seemed to realize it only after Maya's eyebrows touched. "Missing Lucas."

For a moment, Maya wondered if she and Lucas had to get 'we're not dating' tattooed on their foreheads for their friends to believe them. "Its helps that we're not involved like that." Maya brushed the hair off of her friend's cheek and kiss it, pulling Riley closer to her. "And modern technology means that I talk to him as often as I talk to you."

There were Skype sessions three times a week, and random text message throughout the day. Lucas talked her through a panic attack when she realized that trying to get more involved with the art department at school meant less hours at Topanga's which would mean that she would need to talk to her mother and Shawn about money. There was also the random vaguely dirty picture to keep her motivated to go for runs by herself, or to get up on Saturday mornings for the spin class she agreed to take with Topanga.

But Riley's brain seemed to stop on her first sentence. "He came home a day early just so he could spend time with you." The brunette snaked a hand out of her blanket so she could take another sip of her drink. "How can you not be 'like that'?"

"He would have done the same thing if it were you or Farkle or Zay." She paused, remembering their loquacious friend who seemed to get himself roped into going camping with his cousins for fall break. "Well, maybe not Zay." Riley's smile was indulgent, and Maya shook her head. "Shawn's upstate and Mom's in Chicago." She wasn't entirely sure if she meant the state, or the show, but both meant that she was out of town. "He came home early because I made a joke about spending another night in an empty house alone. Hopalong's sweet like that." Neither one of them had slept with anyone since they'd spent Labor Day weekend at the Minkus beach house, but Riley still seemed to get a little twitchy about sex.

Then something in her clicked, and she kissed Riley's cheek again.

"Is this about me and Lucas, or you and Will?"

Maya hadn't been the only relationship that Riley had left on the island, with Will attending Columbia pre-med, it meant that he too was hours away from her for extended periods of time. He'd done what any good boyfriend would do though, and Maya had turned down an invitation at least twice a month to ride with him up to visit his girlfriend. He'd even gotten a hotel room so she wouldn't have to worry about begging her roommate to letting him sleep on the floor.

And not once did he mention the fact that they still hadn't slept together.

Maybe Maya should have asked for that alcohol after all.

"Will adores you, Honey." She wondered if she could reach her phone and send off a quick message to the man in question. "I wouldn't be here if I had an exam in Organic Chem either." Both girls paused, and Maya shrugged. "Or if I was  _in_  Organic Chem."

A smile tugged at Riley's lips and Maya scrunched her nose. "What happens when he decides that driving to New Haven just to take me to dinner isn't enough?"

"I'll kick his ass." The words came quickly, and both of them knew that it wasn't realistic. "Not that that's going to happen." She took a breath, pushing her breath out just to see the wisps float from her mouth. "What you and Will have isn't about sex, it's about love, and that means that if you two want to make it work, it will." There was a moment when Maya wished that she could voice that she wished she had that. "You're Cory and Topanga, I wouldn't be surprised if fifteen years from now  _your_  kid isn't trying to make her own way in the world like you did."

"You're gonna have to have one too, to show mine the ropes." It was a weak joke, and Maya hugged her friend tighter.

"Don't worry about how many years you'll get with Will," she said after a moment, completely bypassing the idea of her having a child of her own. "You make the time you get count."

Riley wiped her nose and turned in her best friend's arms. "Like you and Lucas?"

The eye roll was second nature to her, and she gave Riley a gentle shove as she reached for her mug again. "You realize that just this morning he was trying to convince me to make a move on Josh?" It wasn't exactly how the conversation went, but Riley didn't have to know that.

The younger girl shuttered, shaking her head. "I still don't want you to be my aunt."


	12. Part VIII: The Story of Tonight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He’d seen Maya Hart dressed up and dressed down. From pj’s and gym days to homecoming dances and prom. She’d been sophisticated and playful, laughing it up with Riley and innocently sultry hanging on Lucas’s arm. But it was entirely possible that he had never seen her so uniquely mature. If he wasn’t distinctly aware of her nervous lopsided grin, he could make an argument that the woman in front of him wasn’t Maya Hart.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 5,135  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in College, Josh is in his Senior year at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either. This chapter also makes more than a few references to the Broadway hit  _Hamilton_ by the ever talented Lin-Manuel Miranda. I don't own it, but I LOVE IT

* * *

 

It was entirely possible that Joshua Matthews was hallucinating.

He didn’t usually go out with his friends on Sunday nights. Putting in double duty at work and school usually meant that Sunday nights were catch up for schoolwork and gave him a day to prep for whatever the next week as a junior architect intern was going to throw at him. And since he’d had the last week off of school for fall break, that meant jumping head first into his thesis prep while picking up extra hours at S.O.M.

He was still marveling at the fact that his was a paid internship, after all.

But Fall Break coincided with Columbus Day this year, which meant that he had neither work nor school to worry about in the morning, so it was okay to pretend that he didn’t have any obligations looming.

And it wasn’t like they hadn’t been planning this night for quite a few months.

It had been Christian’s idea really, He’d been dating Allison for a little over four months, and she’d been over at the apartment that Austin and Josh shared for their usual Wednesday night cram session. When her uncle called. He was a Marketing Officer for the Richard Rogers Theater and he’d heard that Hamilton – a favorite of hers since she was in high school – was coming back to Broadway and he was able to go ahead and book some tickets if she was interested.

After half an hour of squealing, Christian had taken it upon himself to text half a dozen friends and begin the process of what Austin had immediately started referring to as the ‘Mass Date.’

Naturally they’d all made cracks about how awkward it was going to be when Allie dumped Christian’s ass before the show, but no one was actually serious. Allie didn’t make it any better, stating numerous times that she’d deal with most of her ex-boyfriends if it meant mid-orchestra center seating to the brilliance that was Lin-Manuel Miranda.

As the date got closer, the plan solidified further. Since it was a seven o’clock showing, they’d all meet for drinks at Bar Seven Five down on Wall Street. An hour or so to allow everyone to congregate, and then they would take cabs to the theater. After the show, they’d catch a late dinner at the NoMad before all heading their own ways.

They’d all dressed up for it, too. The girls even scheduling a spa day, although Josh was more than willing to bet that that had more to do with the fact that Allison and her best friend Hope were always looking for an excuse to pamper themselves.

It was to be considered their last hurrah before everyone bunkered down for their thesis research and final semester of NYU.

Which could be why Josh was seeing things right now.

Maybe he really was working too hard.

“Dude,” Austin leaned closer to him at their table, nodding toward the entrance. “Is that Maya?”

While it wasn’t the exact words that he had been using in his mind, Josh seemed to nod anyway, his eyes still on the door where Maya Hart was apparently telling the hostess that she was meeting friends and gesturing vaguely towards the back of the bar.

Allison’s head perked at the sound of the younger girl’s name, and she hopped up, tugging at the bottom of her cocktail dress as she waved an arm above her head. “Over here!” She clapped her hands together before skirting her boyfriend and meeting Maya halfway to the table. “I’m so glad you made it!”

The girl in question smiled slowly, allowing Allison to help remove her wrap, doe eyes still taking in the eight other people at the table. While most of the other ladies had decided that this was an upscale event, with the exception of Hope, who seemed to have thought that dressing up meant a lace slip dress that Josh was pretty sure was meant for the bedroom, Maya seemed to err on the side of caution. Her dress was a very dark green, draped and made of some sort of silky jersey material. It wasn’t short, the hem stopping just below her knee. The cowl neck dipped low enough to hint at her cleavage, and the dress itself was sophisticatedly tight, paired with a dark belt and minimal jewelry. Her heels were killer, as per usual for the blonde, giving her, at least, five inches as well as allowing her to display her calves.

He’d seen Maya Hart dressed up and dressed down. From pj’s and gym days to homecoming dances and prom. She’d been sophisticated and playful, laughing it up with Riley and innocently sultry hanging on Lucas’s arm. But it was entirely possible that he had never seen her so uniquely mature. If he wasn’t distinctly aware of her nervous lopsided grin, he could make an argument that the woman in front of him wasn’t Maya Hart.

“You look fantastic!” Allie draped the wrap over the back of her boyfriend’s chair, giving Maya a true once-over. “We are totally going to have to talk about what you’re hiding in your closet!”

Maya’s smile seemed to be frozen in place as she nodded along with the older woman, her golden waves bouncing lightly in it’s messy braided chignon. “Are you sure I’m okay?” Blue eyes cast a quick glance around the table at the various cocktail dresses. “You said 'classic blind date', but I’ve never had one of those, so I just kinda guessed.”

Austin joined them then, offering Maya his tall chair. “We’ll keep you.” He gave her a quick hug, whispering assurances in her ear. “Can I grab you a drink?”

“Sure, surprise me,” her smile popped, and Josh had to resist the urge to remind Austin that she still had two years to go before drinking in public was legal. It probably wouldn't have mattered anyway.

Instead, he took a long sip of his Bluepoint, allowing the beer to sit on his tongue a moment before swallowing. “What are you doing here?”

Yeah, that wasn’t exactly what he had wanted to say.

But at least the nervous gleam in her eyes seemed to fade. “Al called when Will and I were putting Riles on her train at Penn.” The redhead in question winked at them over the rim of her Manhattan. “She said you guys had an extra ticket if I could get here in time for drinks.”

And now Josh got to marvel at the fact that his nieces train was set to depart a little over two hours ago, which meant that the blonde in front of him had concocted her current look in less than an hour. He knew enough about the preparation tactics of women to know that that was pretty impressive.

“I had no idea you were a Hamilton fan,” he commented instead, taking another quick sip of his beer.

“You’ve got to be kidding.” Allie seemed to change seats with Christian in an instant. Or rather, she climbed over her boyfriend. “New Years?” Josh’s blank stare was all she needed to roll her eyes. “She and Riley did the entirety of Non-Stop in the elevator on the way to the limo.” It seemed that Maya too had almost forgotten about that particular moment. Her smile was a little less proud than Allie’s. “Her date was horrified.”

“ _Riley’s_ date was horrified.” And suddenly Josh could see Will trying to step away from the group, Riley’s clutch tucked under his arm. He and Smackle were the only two of the high schoolers that didn’t seem caught up in the moment. “Lucas was just the right side of buzzed to join in as Washington.”

He didn’t need to ask why she was extremely proud of that.

And the tall blonde stepping up to Maya’s Hamilton snapped into focus. “Now I remember,” how could he possibly have forgotten it? “I was in the back with Will, pretending not to know you.”

It was Maya’s turn to wink, reaching past his beer to relieve him of his water glass. “Your loss.”

“So Maya,” Richard’s date – whose name escaped Josh at the moment – leaned into the table, Cosmo in hand. “Does your boyfriend go to NYU?” Apparently it didn’t need to be said that Maya was a student there. Perhaps Allie had sought the approval of the girls before offering Maya the extra ticket.

Her head shook slightly, and she took a slow sip of the glass. “I don’t have one of those.”

He was almost tempted to point out the man they were just discussing, who, if memory served, wasn’t heading back to Ithaca until late Monday afternoon.

“How in the hell do _you_ not have a boyfriend?” That was Richard, the Polit. Sci. major that Christian had roomed with the year before. Josh wasn’t extremely fond of the man. His blatant neglect of his date since Maya’s arrival one of many reasons. 

Maya didn’t seem phased though, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. “I wasn’t aware that they were a requirement for life.” Her smile was indulgent, maybe a little too.

Austin picked that moment to reappear, a fresh beer bottle in one hand and a Mojito in the other. He gallantly held out the Collins glass for Maya, who took it with a wink. “Maya here is one of those brilliant forward thinking women who believe that she shouldn’t have to give up her life for a man.” He took a swig of his beer, resting his forearm on the back of Maya’s stool. There was a pointed glare towards Richard’s date.

“And until I can find one that can keep up with that, I’m keeping my options open.” She leaned into Austin now, her smile bright.

“Well, I think it’s great!” Hope downed the rest of her own Cosmo and signaled the bartender for another. “There is absolutely no reason to rush a man ruining your life.”

Shifting on her hips, Maya dropped her head on Josh’s shoulder, lips near his ear. “What kind of bus was I just pushed in front of?”

“You’re taking Hope’s roommate’s ticket.” Josh clarified, catching a quick whiff of her perfume as their faces seemed to change places, his lips to her ear. “We ordered these back in March, and then Michelle got a boyfriend over the summer.” Maya nodded, her hair tickling his neck. “The boyfriend had no ticket, so guess who just randomly gave hers up?”

Another quick motion and Maya laughed. “And Hope’s not taking it well?”

His smile was careful. “How’d you guess?” She covered her lips with the hand not holding her drink, trying not to side-eye the girl in question. Her eyes said that she was sympathetic. It had been proven time and again that she and Riley would always put each other in front of any significant other, and she felt sorry for anyone who didn’t have that. Her drop earring shook as she began to pull away, and Josh took her hesitation to lean in again. “And in case I haven’t said it yet, you look amazing.”

She wasn’t blushing, Maya Hart didn’t do that. But if she sat up straighter as she hopped into the middle of the conversation that Austin and Allison were having about the turntables on stage at the Richard Rogers, Josh took it as a win.

* * *

 

The show was absolutely brilliant.

Josh had never been a big fan of musicals, much to his mother and older brother’s dismay, but the music and lyrics, as well as the incredibly hyped audience, had grabbed a hold of him and not let him go.

It may have also had something to do with the vibrant energy that radiated from the seatmate to his immediate left during the entire performance.

Maya had switched seats with Austin once they’d realized that she truly did get Michelle’s seat – and begged them to not force her to sit next to the bitter brunette that was both side-eyeing her and trying to encourage a sisterhood. It hadn’t been a difficult transition, his roommate taking her initial seat meant that they were able to still communicate during the show and Christian didn’t have to be regulated to their third stooge, seeing as though Allie had decided that Maya could just sit by her.

He caught her putting her own hand over her mouth to stop herself from singing along twice, Austin did it for her one last time while Burr urged Jefferson and the former Hercules Mulligan into trying to oust the title player. They’d pantomimed the entirety of the song about the Reynolds Pamphlet to each other afterward, and Josh would have given anything to have been able to pull his phone out and record it.

The high seemed to follow them all the way to the restaurant, or at least in their cab. Even with the cramped situation, Maya and Allison traded lines with zest, the former sliding further and further into his lap as she gesticulated wildly. There wasn’t even a pause as she finally pulled her phone out of her purse to check her texts, Austin’s hands on her hips to guide her further down the sidewalk as they waited for the second cab to arrive with the rest of the group.

“Riley’s home,” she looked up briefly, flipping her phone so he could see the selfie that his niece had sent her, flopped back onto her neon pink comforter.

“You tell her where you are?” He shook his head as Maya flipped her phone back to herself, pulling Austin’s hair to get him to prop his head on her shoulder for a selfie of her own that contained the three of them. He didn’t see the caption she added to it, before sending it back to Riley. He was also fairly certain that when his phone buzzed a few minutes later, it was a text to alert him that he’d just been tagged in _FromTheHart_ ’s latest Instagram post.

Maya nodded, coming to a stop next to Hope. “I called her on my way back to Shawn’s.” She didn’t have to tell him that the reason she’d picked that particular place to get dressed was because her closet there was the biggest.

Which led him to wonder how she found anything with three bedrooms in the same city.

Before he could ask if she’d been jealous, Richard stepped out of the vehicle, handing the cab his fare. “Did you have fun?”

With Austin standing behind her, moving her back and forth as he hummed one of the numbers, Maya couldn’t help but smile. “Absolutely!”

His date stepped between them then, her arm coming up around his waist. “Was this your first Broadway show?”

Josh bit his lip to keep from smiling. Even growing up in Philly, it was a right of passage that you had finally made it to middle school when your class got to travel to New York to see Les Mis. He hadn’t particularly enjoyed the show – which had more to do with the fact that eleven-year-old Joshua Matthews was wanting to look cool in front of his peers – but he’d still gone. He supposed that when your school was physically eight blocks from Broadway, your experience was slightly different.

But the blonde just smiled. “I wish.” She readjusted her wrap and took a step away from Austin to maintain her own stability. “My mom tours with Aquila,” both Josh and his roommate knew how much it hurt for her to say that out loud. Maya was extremely proud that Katy had finally gotten her ‘big break,’ but it had meant that her living with more than half a mom had been reduced to only three years. “And my best friend is kind of obsessed with Idina Menzel.”

The entire world would be amazed to learn that by ‘best friend’ she meant Farkle Minkus.

Allie had finally caught up with them, pulling Christian’s jacket further around her carefully. “What all have you seen?” Her boyfriend took that opportunity to open the door to the NoMad, slowly ushering them inside.

“I think the easier question would be what I haven’t.” Maya took a step back, bumping into Josh, before allowing him to propel her forward. “Rent two or three times, Wicked, If/Then, Phantom, most of the Disney’s,” once Stewart Minkus had discovered that Maya shared Farkle’s penchant for musicals, every single time the family made it to a show she had received an invitation. And she did mean _every single time_. “I loved Spamalot, and Book of Morman was an eye-opener.” Especially since it wasn’t made apparent what it was actually about before curtain. She didn’t seem to notice that Richard’s condescending smile had slid off his face. “And we did Finding Neverland for my sixteenth birthday.” She pointed to Josh as she said it, making it sound more like it had been just the two of them than the entirety of the Matthews Clan.

The sound that came out of Allison’s mouth was impressed in nature. Even after witnessing the opulence and charity of the Minkus family, it was still hard to take in. “Next time F’s in town and needs a date, you’ll send him my way, right?”

Maya nodded. “Okay, but Isadora’s kind of possessive.”

She didn’t seem to pay attention to the fact that Josh had pulled her chair out for her, dropping her purse next to the table leg before sliding into the indicated seat, He did give her shoulder a quick squeeze, though, as he helped her scoot herself in.

He couldn’t miss the fact that her eyes popped when she opened her menu, already having dropped her napkin in her lap.

There wasn’t a discreet way to tell her that he’d help pick up the tab since she wasn’t expecting that kind of expense when she’d agreed to hang out with them that night, so instead he channeled his inner Shawn Hunter and smiled at the waitress that arrived to get their drink orders. “Can I start out with a glass of water?” He smiled up at the woman before putting his arm on the back of Maya’s chair. “And she’ll have the Asain Pear Sparkler.” Refined and stylish, and 100% alcohol-free.” When Maya’s brow scrunched he shot her a grin. “She’s on my bill.”

“I do believe that’s the smoothest move I have ever seen you pull.” Austin didn’t hide his applause, backed up by Allie’s delighted grin. Christian just nodded appreciatively.

He couldn’t tell if Maya was imagining maiming him as she slid her hand onto his shoulder. “And completely unnecessary.” There wasn’t a way to have any sort of privacy at the round table, and Maya seemed to consider her next words carefully.

A minute shake of her head later and it hit Josh like a ton of bricks.

Maya wasn’t pissed that he’d essentially stolen her check out from under her. The clenched jaw and side eye had nothing to do with him at all.

She was embarrassed.

It was a matter of fact that every time the ‘fabulous five’ – and he never understood how Riley managed to make _that_ nickname stick – went on an excursion that might be a stretch for the Hart coffers, Shawn picked up the tab. When Maya had turned sixteen, part of Hunter’s gift to her had been to give her her own ‘emergency’ credit card for the little things. His only stipulation was that she was accountable for every cent that was spent. Every time she used it, she either texted him the exact dollar amount and what it was for, or a picture of the receipt. And in the event that Maya refused to use Shawn’s money, be it that she had already used the card earlier in the day or she couldn’t justify its usage to herself, either Farkle or Friar found some subtle way to cover her.

While this would definitely fall into card using territory, and he highly doubted that Shawn would mind picking up the tab for a very nice dinner since they hadn’t asked her for reimbursement of the theater ticket, the fact that Maya hadn’t realized how much dinner was going to cost her so she could go ahead and ask stung.

And the fact that she hadn’t been prepared for this situation mortified her.

Throwing a quick look to Allison, who had seemed to pick up on something with the female ESP that they all seemed to have, Josh slid his arm further behind Maya on the chair. “Come on, Hart.” He caught her eye and his smile softened. “You’ve been begging me to take you on a date for years, and _now_ you’re going to turn me down?”

He didn’t know if it was the sentence or the situation that caught her, but her laugh was totally worth it. “And what exactly do you plan on doing if I decide to have the lobster?” Her tone was challenging.

Maya’s head had tilted to the side, and if it were directed in any other direction, Josh could already hear the ‘ha-hurr’ that was to follow. Somewhere in the back of his memory, fourteen-year-old Maya was stealing his college acceptance letter and announcing that he was stuck with her for the next four years. “You’ve been vying for this for six years,” the wink he threw was in no way careful. “I might as well make it worth your while.”

There was a cough on the other side of the table, and Richard’s date was riveted, “Is someone going to explain what that’s all about?”

Austin may or may not have coughed ‘Uncle Boing’ into his hand like a middle schooler.

Maya definitely responded to that by sticking her tongue out at him.

Josh just shook his head. “Maya’s been my niece’s best friend for forever.” He actually wasn’t entirely sure when the girls had met. There was a vague story that Topanga liked to quote about kindergarten Maya coming to Riley’s defense and hitting a teacher with a coloring book, but he’d never actually heard how they got their start.

His mouth opened, and Maya’s voice overlapped his. “And once upon a time, I _might_ have been misguided enough to have a crush on him.”

Austin took a skeptical sip of his own glass of water and nodded. “Might?”

“Misguided,” Maya corrected. “He was the cool, not-so-old uncle,” she gestured vaguely in his direction. “And every time I pointed that out Cory’s jaw would do the thing.” She was pointing to her own face now, trying to imitate Cory’s tick. Half the table laughed, having witnessed ‘the thing’ at least once in their four years of friendship. “Then I got out of middle school.” The waitress returned with the orders from the bar and Maya’s eyes widened, realizing that she still hadn’t actually looked over the menu.

Starting at the other end of the table hadn’t helped either, as she was still trying to decipher it when the waitress got to her and Josh. “I’m gonna go with the ‘suckling pig,’” he’d only barely succeeded in not sounding like he was trying to arrange golf on his yacht, Austin’s ridiculous British accent as he ordered his own food still stuck in his mind. Maya caught his eye and she shook her head. “And she’ll have the venison.”

The waitress nodded, jotting down their orders and trying her hardest not to laugh at the group. “Of course, and crudité and charcuterie for the whole table?”

Allison nodded, pointing to her already empty wine glass. “Thank you!”

* * *

 

Maya didn’t even want to check the time as they all congregated outside, trying to decide just how many cabs they would need to get everyone home. She just knew that it was late. Had it not been for the sheer amount of alcohol that Allison had consumed, Christian had strongly considered just taking the N back to his off-campus apartment. Richard had already departed, once it had been decided that his date would make sure that Hope got back to her room all right.

“We could always share,” Christian was telling Josh. “You and Aus aren’t that much farther down the block.”

Giving Hope an over-exaggerated kiss on the cheek, Austin handed cash to the cabbie for the girls’ ride before turning around. “But then who’d see Ms. Hart was returned to her domicile unharmed?”

“I’m a big girl.” She emphasized that particular sentence by finally pulling her phone from her bag, the lanyard with her mace wrapped around her wrist. “Perfectly capable of riding the subway all by myself.”

As Allison launched into a speech about girl power, Josh just shook his head. “You got someone waiting for you on the other side?” Maya’s eyes widened, and her mouth opened as she tried to decide if she was offended. “I meant-” he cut her off. “Could Lucas meet you at Canal Street?”

“You realize that it is possible for me to go home alone, right?”

He managed to see past her indignation to the unsaid statement that Lucas had obviously spent the night at his parent’s place. It also didn't escape his notice that she didn't have to ask how he knew Shawn wasn't home for him to meet her either. Josh looked to his roommate as Christian waited for a second cab to pull up. “You riding with us or them?”

“ _You’re_ riding with them,” Maya’s head tilted to the left and she smiled at Christian.

The older man was smart enough to smile back and open the door so his girlfriend could climb into the cab.

“Don’t argue with him too long.” Allison kissed Maya on the cheek after a long hug. “And we are doing lunch this week.” Christian waved in lieu of his own hug, allowing Austin to close the door behind them and tap the hood of the cab.

“I’m not going to argue at all.” Maya took a step back, brushing wisps of hair out of her eyes.

He didn’t even think about looking at Austin. His roommate would be absolutely no help here, he didn’t think. “Neither am I,” a step forward. “You’re getting dropped off first.” And then he realized that one of them had been lying. “Look, Maya.” A hand through his hair and Josh was trying very hard to say exactly what he was thinking right then. “If it weren’t after midnight, and you weren’t wearing–“ there really was no guarantee that she didn’t misinterpret the gesture that he made when he raked his eyes over her form. “I would have no problem letting you take three trains,” because he knew exactly which route home she would have to take, “by yourself.

“But you are _unequivocally gorgeous_ , and it’s late, and there is absolutely no way that I would ever forgive myself if anything happened to you between here and Beach.” Josh wasn’t sure if it was his brain that had short-circuited, or if her entire body seemed to freeze when he’d started that last sentence. “So if you wouldn’t mind letting me pay for another cab ride home, I would greatly appreciate it.”

Whatever she had been about to counter his argument with seemed to evaporate. Maya’s still wide eyes cut to Austin, then to the cab, before coming back to Josh’s own. She didn’t say a word as she readjusted her wrap to cover more of her shoulders and tucked her purse more firmly into her elbow. Maya swallowed before nodding, moving around Josh so Austin could open the door for her.

Austin stopped him before he was able to make it to the cab himself. “I have no idea what just happened there.”

“Neither do I,” Josh fell into the seat, not noticing that Austin shut the door and rounded the cab to bookend Maya, instead of sliding in next to him.

Maya didn’t say a word the entire eighteen-minute ride to Shawn’s.

It wasn’t as if Austin didn’t try. Between him rapping one of the multitudes of verses from Hamilton to trying to discuss Maya’s need for killer heels, he ran the gamut of conversation starters. He even asked about both Katy and Shawn – and commented on a few of the more recent Instagram posts that she had made during her week with her friends.

And gotten absolutely nothing. 

He caught Josh’s eyes over the top of blonde hair as the cabbie turned down Shawn’s street, shaking his head “I think you broke her.” Josh was exceedingly glad that the words had been mouthed in his general direction and not spoken aloud.

“8 Beach!” The cab driver pulled up to the curb and flicked the blinkers on, signaling his stop. “Who’s getting out?”

Josh had the door open and was out on the sidewalk before any of them could think. Maya followed, albeit more slowly considering the skirt and heels. “Thank you.” Josh didn’t seem to notice that she had closed the door to the cab, coming up short when he’d spoken.

Tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, Maya smiled. “Isn’t that supposed to be my line?”

They stared at each other for a moment, still not entirely sure what they were supposed to say.

“Thanks for dinner, Josh.” Maya reached into her purse again, pulling her keys free. “And for the ride home.”

He stepped to her now, a careful hand on her arm. “Anytime, for either of those.” Was he supposed to hug her now? Would she let him?

She made the decision for him, stepping up and giving him the briefest squeeze that he ever thought possible. “I’ll see you later.”

Austin had apparently given the driver their address, and the car slid off the curb just as quickly as he had gotten the door shut. That didn’t stop his roommate from throwing him a look as he watched the door close behind Maya. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” Josh both nodded and shook his head at the same time. He pointed out the window with a shrug. “That was just new.”

There was a nod as if Austin wasn’t entirely sure how much he was allowed to comment on the scene that they had just found themselves in, before deciding against it and launching himself into a full rant about Hope and her lack of personality that evening.

When Josh’s phone buzzed after they had paid the driver and were starting into their own building, he raced for it. There was only a handful of people that would possibly be up at one in the morning, and the likelihood that it was the blonde they had just left was high. He came up short, however, when his niece’s name was at the top of the notifications on his phone; _[Content hidden]_ underneath it. It was entirely possible that he had made his way up the stairs and down the hall on autopilot, **What did you do to Maya?!?!** burned into his brain.


	13. [Interlude] What Did I Miss?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Guess who just got offered a mid-center orchestra ticket to Hamilton tonight?!?!” Riley couldn’t be sure when exactly, over the course of their friendship, she and Maya stopped saying ‘hello’ at the beginning of phone calls. And while normally she would be reprimanding her best friend for lack of etiquette, Maya’s words caught up to her and she let out a squeal.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 2,609  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in College, Josh is has graduated NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either. This chapter also makes more than a few references to the Broadway hit Hamilton by the ever talented Lin-Manuel Miranda. I don't own it, but I LOVE IT

* * *

 

"Guess who just got offered a mid-center orchestra ticket to  _Hamilton tonight_?!"

Riley couldn't be sure when exactly, over the course of their friendship, she and Maya had stopped saying 'hello' at the beginning of phone calls. And while normally she would be reprimanding her best friend for lack of etiquette, Maya's words caught up to her and she let out a squeal. "You did!" She glanced apologetically at the businessman who was now staring at her. "You did," she repeated, much softer.

"I did!" Maya was hopping up and down, Riley didn't need to be next to her to know it. While the Minkus family had taken them to the play their freshman year of high school, it was one that Maya was insistent that she could see again, and again, and again.

And Riley had no problem agreeing with her.

So instead of being jealous, Riley took a deep breath and asked, "how?"

"I have no idea." Maya was laughing, and Riley could hear the sound of the subway around her. "Al just called and said that they had an extra ticket." She seemed to stutter as if trying to figure out whether or not she needed to reiterate that Al equaled Allison, Christian's girlfriend.

To get her back on her proper thought, Riley laughed. "And?"

"And I have two hours to get dressed and down to Bar Seven Five." Maya's breath hitched. "What do I wear?"

The giggle wasn't planned, really it wasn't. Maya Hart had never really had a girly moment in her life – and shopping for a new wardrobe with Shawn didn't count - she picked what she liked there was no nervousness. "Did Al give you any parameters?" It was probably the simplest place to start.

"Classic Blind Date." The phrase seemed foreign to Maya, and Riley smiled again. "What the hell do people wear on blind dates?"

Riley slid back into her seat, kicking her legs up next to her. "How have you never been on a blind date?" She responded instead.

Maya huffed in her ear. "When do I have time?"

And Riley supposed it was true.

While they may joke that Riley was Miss All-American College Girl, Maya didn't seem to be too far behind her. She had a full schedule, plus two art lectures that she had managed to pick up by the grace of God and her Faculty Adviser, maintained a B+ average, and she still kept her part-time job at  _Topanga's_. Maya had study groups and she scheduled studio time, and that was in addition to the lunches and dinners that she squeezed her mother and Shawn into when they were in town. She helped her parents get Auggie where he needed to be, and – and Riley still had a hard time believing this one – she and Topanga had started a Saturday morning spin class.

The more she thought about it, the more Riley wondered if it weren't for the marvels of modern technology if their friendship would survive college. "Which closet are we dressing you out of?" She asked instead of voicing any of that.

"Shawn's."

For starters, it was closer to the bar, thirteen minutes and 2 trains rather than the twenty minutes and three trains from her dorm room. Then there was the fact that of the two closets which may contain appropriate clothing, the one at Shawn's was decidedly bigger.

Thankfully both girls seemed to have mentally cataloged each other's wardrobes. "You've got the mid-length London." Riley started, closing her eyes to make it easier to 'walk' through the closet. "The purple one?"

"It's too cold for that." It was also above the knee, and Maya didn't think that was appropriate. She just didn't want to say it out loud. "The American Rag slip dress?"

Riley shook her head, forgetting Maya couldn't see her. "That's 'classic' in the  _wrong_  way, Peaches." Which was not unlike reminding Maya that it was far too skimpy for a night on Broadway. "Your Lanvin is too expensive." It was also out of season – having been bought and worn for New Years Eve – but neither one of them were too concerned with that. "What about the fit-and-flare? The black one?"

Earrings scraped against the phone case, and Riley could tell it was Maya's turn to shake her head. "I look like a twelve-year-old in it." She reminded her best friend.

Sounds of the street invaded Riley's hearing, and she heard Maya's hello to the guy that owned the newsstand in Tribeca Park. "What about your Maggy London?" It was one of two dresses that were bought for her art school interviews – of which she had three – but Riley remembered that it was a gorgeous red color.

Maya seemed to consider it, a good minute passing before she sighed. "That could work," she agreed. "But I think it's at Mom's."

The frustration was mounting; Riley could feel it. "Next time I'm in town we're reorganizing your closets," she decided with a huff. "This is getting ridiculous."

There was a laugh on the other end, and Maya nodded. "I'm almost never at Mom's anymore, we could just move the important stuff out of there." A jingle and a clank, and Maya called out to one of Shawn's downstairs' neighbors as she bypassed the elevator in favor of the stairway. Her keychain bouncing against her hand.

"I know your ModCloth Narrator is in the back of your closet–"

"No."

A door slammed, and Riley reached for her water. "Why not?"

Maya dropped her keys on the island, and Riley could hear the distinct sound of her kicking her boots off on the way to her room. Shawn was out of town for another few days at least – picking up a gig in Maine the day after his last assignment ended – and he was well versed in living with Maya anyway. "it's pink." It was blunt, almost laced with disgust. Riley couldn't remember why the dress had been purchased – she thinks it was for the Senior Awards night, where Maya had gotten three – but she's fairly certain it hasn't been worn since.

"It's a very pretty dress." Riley tried again. "And you can wear those white sandals with it."

"It's pink," Maya repeated again, her tone lower. "I'm not wearing it."

There was a long moment when one was trying to regroup, and the other was doing a decent job of not frantically thumbing through the racks of her closet. Riley didn't bother to tell her best friend that she was muttering under her breath. "Too short. Not short enough. I  _can't_  wear pants." A few choice curse words later, and Maya turned to assess the other side of the closet. Thrift shops, second-hand stores, department store sales; Maya's closets had evolved over the years to cover a multitude of situations, trends, and styles. So why was it so hard to find something for one night? "No, no, no. Dear God, why did I buy that?"

"It was on sale." Riley didn't even know what it was that Maya was looking at, but she that was pretty much the standard reason for things winding up in either one of their closest. Either that or it was purchased for one specific purpose, and once that purpose was over, it was of no other use, and they didn't want to give it up in case it could be used again. "Just like that hunter…" Riley's eyes popped, and she sat up straight, trying not to hop in her seat. "The rouched green dress," she announced quickly. The one with the cowl neck that you swore you'd have no use for after that thing for Shawn's work?"

Maya stifled a laugh, pawing her way to the back of the row she was on to locate the dress in question. She had no idea where she'd found it, a last minute buy so she could attend Shawn's publishing house's idea of a low-key Christmas party. It had been mandatory for her pseudo-father, and he had drug her along because her mother was out of town again, and he wanted an excuse to leave early if it sucked. And it wasn't that she didn't like it. It was made of a jersey-like material that was both warm, and breathable. She just never really had a reason to wear it again – it didn't exactly scream 'school.' – so it had been regulated to the back of her closet.

"Are you sure it's dressy enough?" Maya tossed it onto the bed so she could retrieve her headphones. Popping an earbud in, and attaching it to her phone, she reached for the hanger again, holding it up and snapping a quick picture. "It doesn't exactly scream 'Mass Broadway Date'." 

Riley nodded emphatically for all of ten seconds before realizing that Maya couldn't see her. Her phone vibrated, signaling that she had gotten Maya's text, and she nodded again. "Do you still have my Cashmere wrap?"

There was a squeak, followed by a very sheepish, "possibly."

The laugh just happened. It wasn't as if they hadn't appropriated each others things over the years. Heck, the earrings Riley was wearing at the moment were Maya's. "Then do that with your Bebe heels." Maya opened her mouth again, but Riley was already calculating time in her head. "Run through the shower, you don't have time to wash your hair. Text me when you're done."

It was entirely possible that this was the first time in their entire friendship Riley Matthews had ever hung up on her best friend. She was about to apologize when her phone vibrated.

**I <3 U Honey!**

* * *

 

An hour and fifteen minutes later got Riley a picture of Maya's finished ensemble – she definitely approved of the decision to wear her hair up – and an over-exaggerated kissy face in the mirror. She was given an honorable mention on Maya's Instagram feed when she posted an excited grin on the subway, and Maya sent a quick message that she had gotten to the bar and was going radio-silent until after the show.

Riley spent the rest of her train ride texting Will and getting a head start on the material for her classes on Tuesday. Not the most exciting way to spend two hours, but it made less she had to do when she got back to New Haven.

As had become standard when she made a trip home, she grabbed dinner for her and her suitemate, Thai this time, and jumped head first into unpacking the second she shut the door. Once that was completed, Riley sent a quick selfie to Maya announcing her arrival safely back at her place of higher education, alerted her parents and boyfriend of the same thing – this time, without the picture of her fanned out against her comforter – and proceeded to spend quality time with her suitemate.

They were halfway through catching up on the shows that they had missed during the week with their families when her phone chimed, signaling that Maya's self-imposed radio silence had come to an end. She was greeted with the view of Maya's perfectly made up face, Josh leaning on one shoulder and Austin's head popping in from the other direction, Maya's hand fully embedded in his hair. All three of them were smiling like crazy people, with Broadway and 28th providing their background. The picture was accompanied with the caption:  **And when our children tell our story, they'll tell the story of tonight!**

She sent back a quick shot of her view of the television, oversized hot chocolate mug and empty ice cream bowl on the coffee table included, tagged  **What did I miss?**

The next text was just a picture of the sign for the NoMad Restaurant,  **Decisions are happening over dinner**  following.

She didn't have to tell Maya to enjoy it, or that she understood that she wasn't going to be getting any texts until after they had their meal; if she was still awake.

It turned out that she and Callie had fallen asleep together on the oversized couch in their suite halfway through the episode of  _Scorpion_ , managing to twist and turn each other so they were thoroughly intertwined when the text tone announced that Maya was reaching out again. Riley reached for her phone lazily, fully expecting another three-person selfie to announce that the night of shenanigans was coming to a close.

**Made it home. Text u in the morning.**

That couldn't be right.

Riley rubbed her eyes and pulled the screen up again. Yep, she read it right the first time. That wasn't just a change in tone, it was a completely new attitude from three hours earlier. And that didn't sit well with her. She extracted herself from Callie carefully, making sure that she neither kicked her suitemate nor collided with the coffee table as she regained her feet. Normally this was the part where she would return the dishes and silverware to the kitchenette, but her mind just wasn't on it.

**Everything okay?**

In her opinion, it took entirely too long for Maya to respond. After all, Riley had enough time to get from the living area to her bedroom – and quietly close the door – before she got a response.

 **Just tired**.

She tried to decide whether or not to believe her best friend. Years of experience said that even a tired Maya would have called her the second she got in the door, breathlessly laughing about how great of a time she had. Thumbing the bottom of her screen to activate the keyboard.  **What's going on  Peaches?**

 **Leave it Riley**.

Another minute.

**I'll text u in the am**

If it weren't well past midnight, this would be the part where Riley would growl in frustration. Since she wasn't allowed to do that, she just dropped down onto her bed, Maya had been fine before the show, and playful after. She hadn't heard anything after dinner, and had that gone horribly, Maya would probably have snuck an S.O.S. text out.

That meant that whatever caused her mood happened after dinner. And the only person Riley could think of that would have a direct impact on that happened to be related to her.

Thumbing her phone back on, Riley sent out the text before she could stop herself.

It wouldn't occur to her until a week later that she never got a response.


	14. Part IX: Beautiful Disaster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If asked – and he was, twice – Josh was not purposefully keeping an eye on Maya throughout the night. She bounced fluidly between dancing with Allison and Austin, both separately and as a threesome, kicking back on the small deck of the apartment next door with some of her freshman friends, and kicking everyone’s ass at Top Card.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick Author's Note: Okay readers, I have decided to share a little piece of myself here with you guys. In order to help me invision the various situations I put out characters into, and to set the mood, I have created a Polyvore and a few playlists that match up with my vision of who the characters are.
> 
> The Polyvore can be found at and-the-moments-gone.polyvore.com/?filter=collections  
> It currently houses the clothing worn by Maya and Riley in this story (more to come). I also update it every few chapters, in case you're interested.
> 
> I'm currently working on the creation of album covers for my 8tracks playlists. If anyone is interested in the songs that will be appearing there - or has a better understanding of Photoshop than I do and can lend me a hand - leave it in your review!

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 5,993  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in College, Josh is in his last year at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other characters featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

If he was being honest with himself, Josh supposed the most amazing part of the week and a half between the night of Hamilton and Halloween was how completely normal Maya had managed to make their few interactions.

It started when he bumped into her on Monday. She'd picked up a shift at Topanga's and he'd been in desperate need of caffeine after his nine am run with Austin. She'd been cordial and even joked with him about which circuit they'd done around Central Park. Josh wasn't really surprised to find out that she'd kept the twice weekly schedule that she and Riley had set their junior year. As much as Maya had grouched and grumbled, it was still an easy way to stay in shape – and clear her head. He and Austin had both inquired about running with her some morning – her usual Hudson River track instead of their own – and both had received the same head shake brush off as she moved on to the next set of customers.

Tuesday had meant a return to both of his schedules, and he checked out of socializing until his Thursday night dinner at his brother's house in order to allow him time to fall back into the groove. He'd been caught off guard a second time when Topanga asked him about takeout two steps into the room since Cory had Parent-Teacher Night at the school, and he realized that the person sitting at the kitchen table helping Auggie with fractions and variables was Maya. Her sketchbook was out, and as Auggie attempted the next problem on his own, she turned back to it, two figures appearing underneath a streetlight taking shape.

Friday night meant drinks with the guys at Bar Seven Five after work. Saturday was laundry and grocery shopping, Austin took care of the first half, him the second, and he spent Saturday night and the bulk of Sunday spread across the kitchen table with his thesis work.

And then the week seemed to start all over again.

He wasn't sure why he had told Topanga that he would help her man Auggie's class Halloween party at the café. It wasn't like he couldn't make other plans. Sure, Halloween was on a Thursday this year, and his one and only eight am lecture was scheduled for Friday mornings, which made partying slightly more difficult. But it wasn't as if he'd never arrived exhausted and hungover to a course before in the last three and a half years he'd been at NYU.

Not that he'd ever actually admit it out loud.

So instead of gearing up with his roommate – who was apparently tying to be a turtleless ninja turtle this year – Josh channeled his teenage gamer self and dressed as Desmond Miles for the holiday, palming his keys and heading to his brothers to see if he could help with setting up.

* * *

"Were you even trying?" Maya seemed to appear out of nowhere as he took position beside a rather large fake pillar covered in cobwebs, a tray of witch hat cookies in one hand.

He snagged a cookie as she passed to the other side of the café, shaking her head. The tables had all been moved around to create a sort of dance floor. Even though Topanga's still offered their usual fare for the parents, there was a long refreshments table set up on the far side, spooky treats, goodie bags, and a rather large punch bowl dominating. He watched her sidestep Ava seamlessly in order to set the cookies down on the table, righting a few bottles of water that had fallen, before turning and heading back in his direction.

"Trying?" He asked after she came to a stop beside the counter.

Maya gave him a quick onceover, taking in his stylized white and red AC3 hoodie, jeans, and Sketchers. He knew that she knew who he was dressed up as, after all she and Riley had played the entire series when she had her tonsils out two years ago. It also probably helped that he was wearing an old toy hidden blade and the black sling backpack. "You get an A for effort," she decided after a moment, hand twitching as if she wanted to try to smooth down his hair. "But you lose points for originality."

"Originality?" Josh swept an arm around the café, already filling up with mummies and vampires. There was a quartet dressed up like actual ninja turtles in one corner, and a series of girls dressed up like the Monster High kids shuffling in. "Half these kids won't even know who I am."

Auggie popped up beside them, trying to smooth down Maya's shirt from where it had caught on his overalls. "You couldn't have at least come as Kenway? Or Jacob?"

"And somehow you've turned my family against me."

Readjusting his red newsboy cap, Maya winked down at Auggie. "I'll rock Evie for you next year if you want." She threw him a smile as well, bottom lip caught between her teeth.

"Who exactly are you supposed to be anyway?" His finger twitched as he used it to point at her calf-length taupe tulle skirt and off-the-shoulder black top. She had paired it with simple black flats and a black ornamental headband holding her hair back.

Another quick moment to readjust Auggie's mustache, and Maya pushed him in the direction of Dewy and Ava. "Who do you think I am?" She twirled carefully, making sure the skirt didn't fly up. When Josh's eyebrow cocked, Maya sighed. "Riley and I have matched Halloween costumes for the last ten years." She said smartly, pulling her phone out of a pocket he hadn't noticed and pulling up Riley's Instagram. The girl in question was in one of the brightest pair of yellow jeans that Josh had ever seen. She had layered a deep red v-neck tank top under a sheer blue button down and pulled her dark locks up with a red ribbon bow to complete the ensemble. Apparently she was _#disneybounding_ for the Kappa Kappa Gamma Halloween Extravaganza, and even though she didn't add a hashtag for her character, he had seen enough to recognize a modern day Snow White when she was curtseying to the camera through a Clarendon filter. Scrolling up slightly led him to ItsFarkle dressed in a white shirt with a sleeveless jean vest and brown cargo pants, _#FlynnRider_ offering his contribution to their holiday.

Handing her back the phone, Josh took in Maya with a more discerning eye. She was a princess. Even though no one told him that, he knew that Riley wouldn't have stood for her to be anything else. And if he limited himself to the princesses with blonde hair, he had three to choose from. Now while he wasn't nearly as well versed as his brother – having two children – or his sister, he took in the distinct lack of blue or purple to help him narrow it down.

"I thought Sleeping Beauty wore pink?" He asked with a quirk of the lip.

Maya slipped her hair over her shoulder and shook her head. "Only a boy would remember just the pink."

"It's a sixty-year-old movie," Josh reminded her, "that I think I've seen twice in my life." He gestured behind him slowly, in the direction of Ava and her Princess Peach pageant dress. "And she always seemed to look a lot like that."

Another little boy came hopping up, his mother trailing behind trying to adjust the collar on his older brother's Dracula cape. "Carmel apple please?" He held a chubby hand up with a smile.

Crouching to bring herself closer to his height, Maya scrunched her nose. "I don't have the apples, sweetie." She told him, her eyes coming up to look at his mother. "But if you walk straight out that door and turn that way," Maya pulled the little boy close to her, turning him so they faced the same direction, and then pointed left with her hand. "Mrs. Matthews might let you 'Boo Bowl' for one." If he were to hazard a guess, Josh would say that it had been Maya to paint the funny/scary faces on the oversized plastic milk jugs that served as bowling pins.

The woman and her older son had caught up to them then, and she brushed her son's hair out of his face as she smiled. "Why don't you take your brother outside and see if you can't find Mrs. Matthews." The younger kid grumbled, but did as was asked.

Maya straightened, taking a step back to partially move behind the counter. "What can I get for Mom?"

"Chai latte, please?"

Maya nodded and turned to the high schooler hiding behind the counter. "Chai latte, Brit?"

"Yes ma'am!"

"And suddenly your role in tonight is clear." Josh stepped closer to her, bumping her shoulder. He'd been asked to help keep an eye on the sheer number of kids in the café. When Topanga had started organizing this, it had been apparent that the kids would be running in and out of the café, sometimes without their parents. Josh was there to drink free coffee, dole out candy if given the code word won at one of the games outside, and help cull any aggression that bubbled up. It seemed that while she was more than willing to step in when the need arose, Maya's job involved the management of the café while everyone else handled the party.

She turned slightly keeping an eye on the two teenagers that milled about in _Topanga's_ aprons. "You're here because they're family." She pointed to Cory the Captain, leading the smaller children on some sort of treasure hunt. "I'm getting paid."

"Well, that hardly seems fair."

Maya smiled, taking the opportunity to duck behind the counter and help Brit ring out the customer. "You should have held out for a better offer." She raised her own cup to her lips, taking a quick sip.

* * *

After a whirlwind three hours, Josh realized that just because his blonde counterpart was getting paid, didn't mean her job was any easier. She kept the refreshment table stocked, the baristas and paying customers happy, and the café running smoothly, regardless of the fact that half of it had been rearranged. She refilled dispensers, made change for the till and helped handle a toddler meltdown that resulted in no less than three people covered in punch.

And she did it all with a smile on her face.

Which was probably why Cory was watching her count the till with a proud smile on his face, rather than helping Josh move the table they were both standing next to.

Topanga had been sent home with Auggie and Ava, Cory citing that between the planning and set up, she had done more than enough for the day, and they were more than capable of putting everything back into order so the café could open Friday morning as usual. She'd argued, of course she had, before Maya promised to fill out the night deposit slip herself, and leave the receipts and a list of things to be ordered for the day manager.

"I know you two have better things to do than clean all of this up." Cory nodded to Josh first, and then Maya, the blonde catching his eye for only a brief moment before dropping the last of the deposit and the slip into the deposit bag.

"It's okay Mr. Matthews," Maya's smile faded slightly, as if 'better things to do' reminded her of something she wanted to do, but couldn't. "I understood that I was signing away my night when I agreed to work this thing." She locked the bag and dropped the keys into the cash tray to be put into the safe. She slid it back into the drawer, popping it closed to allow her to use the counter space in front of her to spread out the money from the tip jar.

"It's only nine-fifty," Cory double-checked his watch, still kind of amazed that they were closing early. He supposed it made sense though, considering how much they had to work to do to clean up. "Surely you still have time to wreak havoc before you turn into a pumpkin."

She laughed then, finishing up her count of the tips and dividing it among the three of them behind the bar. "Wrong princess, Matthews." Palming her take, Maya dropped three dollars into the jar to start the next shift out and slid the jar into it's cubby behind the counter. "And really, it's fine." She tucked her hair behind her ear and walked the teens to the door, unlocking it so they could slide out into the night, and flipping the tumbler locked again.

The older Matthews physically paused then, leaning against the chair he'd just put back into place. "You mean to tell me that there is absolutely nothing you'd rather be doing tonight?"

Josh wasn't sure what was keeping him quiet. It could have been that while the initial comment was addressed to both of them, the conversation had become more focused on the blonde moving back to the counter. Or it could have been the fact that the mask Maya had been sporting since He'd refused to allow her to ride the subway alone had finally dropped, her usual 'Cory Matthews' induced indulgent smile replacing it. Either way, he wasn't in a hurry to see if it disappeared again.

She was propped on the counter now, forearms bracing herself as she stared down her best friend's father. "If I wanted to hit up a party," Maya countered carefully. "I can do it when we're done."

Cory reached out for the broom and nodded along with her. "You are done, Maya." He said after a moment. When she opened her mouth to argue, Cory shot her his best Feeney impression. "I've got everything from here. Just do me a favor and do the night drop on your way to the station?"

Maya seemed skeptical, reaching under the register for her purse even as she refused to break eye contact. "If you're sure…" she started.

"Go." Cory threw his brother a look as well. "Walk her to the bank, could you?"

And suddenly it was as if Maya realized that he was still in the room with them. "That's not necessary." Her voice was calm, calculated.

But the older Matthews wasn't budging, nodding to the bag that she was sliding into her deceptively small purse. "Humor me?"

Amazingly enough, that was the end of that.

Josh didn't catch where Maya's pea coat had been stashed, nor did he offer to help her put it on, her lanyard appearing out of the pocket. "Thank you, Mr. Matthews," Maya said instead, giving Cory a quick squeeze on her way to the door.

"Have a good night." Cory readjusted the broom in his hand, nodding at both young adults. "Make good choices!"

Josh did hold the door open for her though, nodding down to the petite blonde as she slid under his arm to get out of it. "I'm guessing that means we're not allowed to blow the night's take in AC, then." He aimed his tone for joking, and mentally applauded himself when Maya actually smiled.

"Do you want to guess at how much money I've got in my purse right now?" Maya's eyebrow cocked and she pulled the door to _Topanga_ 's shut firmly before locking the door behind her. While it was true that Cory was the only one there, and fully capable of locking it himself, she had always been told to be vigilant.

Josh shook his head, "not particularly." He admitted. And it was true. He knew that the café did well for itself, and that Maya was responsible for the night drop at least two nights a week. But he didn't need to be told the exact dollar amount that they were walking to bank night drop.

Which reminded him that he had no idea which bank they were walking to.

Maya seemed to understand his dilemma, slipping her arm through his as she propelled them both up the stairs and to the left. They crossed Crosby Street easily, and he noted that Maya had tucked her purse in the space between her coat and his. No matter how many times he got the chance to witness her being what Riley called a 'true New Yorker,' it was always a surprise.

"So what party are you crashing?" Again, he tried for casual, not entirely sure where the line was nowadays. Or how the hell he'd crossed it two Sunday's ago.

"Austin keeps sending me texts from Chris and Allie's thing." Her phone trilled as if to reiterate that fact. She didn't reach for it though, which might have had something to do with the fact that the noise from her pocket was the crisp beep of R2D2, which generally signaled an incoming message from one Lucas Friar.

He still wasn't sure how she managed to keep her tones straight.

They walked a few more feet before she pulled him up short, pointing to the non-descript drawer next to the sign for North Fork Bank. "I'll be right back."

Josh didn't move as Maya practically skipped to the drop, pulling the brown bag out of her purse and slipping it in, allowing the door to slam shut once the bag was in place. She opened it again, to make sure that the bag had gone into the proper receptacle, and moved back to him. "You have officially done your duty, sir." She didn't take his arm again, even after it was offered.

Again, he held out his elbow. "Where to next?"

Again, she ignored it.

"I think I actually am going to stop by Allie's." She turned then, in the direction of the Broadway-Lafayette station, and started off. "The night is young."

He didn't have time to analyze his decision to follow her, taking two long strides to catch up. "Care for some company?"

Maya's steps slowed, and she cast him a weary eye. "Are you doing this because you don't think I can make it there by myself?"

As much as he wanted to defend his actions, Josh knew wasn't sure what to make of her tone. It wasn't angry, or even annoyed, just careful. "I'm doing this because I have absolutely no plans tonight and watching Austin make a drunken ass out of himself sounds fun." It was a half-truth, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that.

It seemed to satisfy her though, and she tucked her purse back into her own elbow before nodding her head down the sidewalk to the lamppost that signaled the entrance to the Subway.

* * *

He didn't have to ask how the party was going when he located their friends in the chaos that was the apartment. The building was one that rented almost exclusively to NYU students who wished to live 'off-campus' and Allison had organized the party with three out of four of the other apartments on their floor, so all of the doors were open, music spilling out of every direction. While they caught up to Austin first – or rather Maya was assaulted shortly after entering the apartment, his roommate picking her up and spinning her around until she was breathless – it was Christian that was the easiest to spot, ironically sporting a red and white striped shirt over a pair of jeans, matching beanie perched on his head.

"I thought you weren't coming, Matthews?" How Christian had managed to grab a beer for both of them in the eight steps to get across the room, Josh might never know. Maya threw him a quick look before the indifference slid back across her face, and he had to resist the urge to curse.

"That had been the original plan," he started. He took the first swig of his brew and nodded to the blonde. "Then someone reminded me that the night is young, and I decided that Jacobs will forgive me if I'm not all there in class tomorrow." The aforementioned professor had actually been instrumental in Josh securing his internship the year before, and he'd discovered that it was damn near impossible to make the man not like him.

Allison popped up out of nowhere, amazingly inconspicuous in her steampunk cloud captain getup. "And this is just one of the many many reasons why we adore you." She kissed Maya's cheek even as she was relieving her of her still-unopened Sam Adams, replacing it with an opened vanilla porter. "You'll thank me later," she mock whispered. "And you can put your purse in my room. It's off limits tonight."

The blonde took a quick sip of the bottle she was handed, nodding enthusiastically. "Thank you," Maya said dutifully, pulling her purse off of her arm so she could dispose of her coat as well.

A hand came out to snatch both the coat and the purse, and on reflex, Maya elbowed Austin in the solar plexus. "Shit!" She turned then, both hands coming up to the man's shoulders. "That's what I get for trying to be helpful."

"I am _so_ sorry!" It was entirely possible she wasn't as good at covering her smile as she thought she was.

Hand to his sternum, Austin nodded. "Totally okay." He nodded to her jacket, hand out. "May I?"

Maya nodded slowly, holding her arm out, quickly sliding her phone out of the pocket of her jacket before physically releasing it. She tapped the wake button, scanning the texts from her friends before putting it to sleep again, dropping it into her pocket. She stepped to Allison then, resting her hand on the ginger's hip, head on her shoulder. "So who wants to show a girl a good time?"

If asked – and he was, twice – Josh was not purposefully keeping an eye on Maya throughout the night. She bounced fluidly between dancing with Allison and Austin, both separately and as a threesome, kicking back on the small deck of the apartment next door with some of her freshman friends, and beating everyone's ass at Top Card.

She hadn't directly addressed him once since entering the building.

It wasn't until hours later, halfway through one of the worst rounds of Never Have I Ever that he had ever had, that Josh finally got his opening to do something about it.

"I'm out!" Maya held her empty bottle up, nodding to Austin, who was the reason for her losing with an extremely exuberant 'Never Have I Ever been in handcuffs'. She braced herself on his shoulder as she stepped over the back of the bench that had been moved into the dining nook, and tossed her empty at the large recycle bin on her way to the kitchen.

He didn't know what possessed him to tap out as well, following her into through the doors to the kitchen and pausing to watch her pull another vanilla porter out of its hiding place in the back of the fridge. She popped the top absently, scratching the back of her neck and reading the magnetic poetry on the freezer door, before taking an incredibly long swallow,

"This is ridiculous."

Maya's body jolted, and she turned to face him wearing a confused smile. "This is what déjà vu feels like."

It was his turn to take a second, realizing suddenly that he had managed to corner her in the only quiet place in Christian's apartment – the kitchen. He had caught her between the fridge and the counter, so he had just enough room to reach around her to set his beer down she crossed her arms over her chest.

"It's entirely possible that this is going to be the same conversation." He too remembered that night in Shawn's kitchen. How they had moved past the odd two-step that they had found themselves in after a wayward comment separated them. Maya blinked, taking a quick sip of her drink before he smiled down at her. "You can be coy this time."

A quick smile, another sip, and Maya nodded. "Pretty sure the term was 'adorably oblivious'." He nodded, allowing her memory to prevail. "And you still haven't said what's ridiculous."

Josh took a step back, because when did he get that close to her, and waived an errant hand between the two of them. "I'm sorry."

Her brow furrowed as if his words weren't matching up with their current situation. Maya's bottom lip snuck between her teeth. "For?"

The hand was back, twitching between the two of them again. "Whatever it was that I said that night what caused" it took all he had to freeze it in the air. "You and I have never had a problem talking to each other." Maya's eyes cut to something just over his shoulder, and Josh pursed his lips, nodding slowly. "In recent history, you and I have never had a problem talking to each other," he amended. Her eyes rolled, and he couldn't help but smile at the gesture. "But whatever I said, however I said it, that returned us to _this_." He didn't gesture this time, choosing instead to take a step forward and use his eyes to cut back and forth between the two of them. "I'm sorry."

The blonde retreated slightly, if only to lean back on the wall perpendicular to the refrigerator, hands behind her back. "It's not your fault," she said.

They stood like that for a moment, neither of them advancing in any way.

"If something I said made you uncomfortable," his eyes flicked to hers. "Then it is most definitely my fault."

She huffed then, displacing her headband and running a hand through her hair. "Is there any way I can get you to stop being chivalrous for, like, ten minutes please?"

"Chivalrous?" Josh's head cocked to the side, and he studied her profile.

"You didn't do anything, Josh." She turned again. "Other than, you know, be you."

Was he allowed to tell her that she was making absolutely no sense right now?

Josh decided against it, turning in the opposite direction and leaning against the counter. He watched as she physically worked through her next sentence, hands gesticulating even while she juggled her headband and her beer. It struck him again how different this woman was from the girl that used to speak in emotions and sentence fragments. What was it about him being him that bothered her so much?

Her head shook slightly, and Josh decided that the silence wasn't getting them anywhere. So he took a deep breath, and jumped right in. "Is it because I said you were gorgeous?" Yeah that wasn't the exact phrase he had used, standing on the sidewalk in the middle of the night, but it was close, right?

Maya laughed, and if her cheeks tinted slightly, he could pretend he didn't see it. "You call me gorgeous all the time." She reminded him.

Their eyes locked, and Josh took a step towards her. "Not like that."

He could physically see her trying to fight the urge to pull away.

"Maya-"

She cut him off by setting her bottle on the counter opposite from him, slipping her headband back into her hair with both hands. Hair sufficiently out of her face, Maya recollected her bottle and took a long drag, fortifying herself. "You're too old for me." It had to be the first time in the existence of that particular phrase that it hadn't come out of Maya's mouth with it's usual flippancy. "And sometimes – sometimes I forget that." Her balance shifted from one foot to the other, top lip trapping itself between her teeth. "And it's not like there aren't a million and one things that should be screaming at me that we will never be a good idea – you're Riley's uncle, and I've never had a relationship last longer than fifteen minutes – not to mention the fact that you've never ever shown any interest in me whatsoever -"

Josh could pinpoint the exact moment when he realized what she was bumbling her way around.

In the last year there had been small moments – infrequent moments – when he stopped seeing her as the Maya Hart she had reintroduced him to her seventh grade year. When instead of a friend, he'd seen the possibility of something more. It was in her wry smile the night of Homecoming, and the tipsy twinkle in her eye when she gave him his very first New Years kiss. Tiny moments when he found himself wondering what would have been if she'd been a few years older, or him younger.

They had passed quickly, his brain stuttering back to reality without much of an overlap, but the look in her cobalt eyes told him that he hadn't been alone in seeing them.

 _"Maya."_ His voice was a bit firmer now, and Josh's back straightened at the exact moment hers did.

"You don't have to say it, Matthews." Her head was shaking again, and he watched as the hand holding her drink started to as well. "And this is the end of the weird, I promise. I just…" She trailed off slowly, taking a breath. "I think I just needed you to know that sometimes, I'm gonna need to take a step back. To," she gesticulated vaguely, "remind myself that all jokes aside, you're a really good guy, and things don't mean more than they actually do."

He chuckled with her, because what else was he supposed to do? And one hand came up absently to scratch the back of his neck. "That's probably the best 'let's be friends' speech I have ever heard." He said after a moment, letting out a breath. And Josh wasn't sure how it was that she could appear both hopeful and humiliated at the same time, but as with everything else, it was a look that Maya Hart wore with a smile. "And considering the fact that we were friends before you said it, it's even more impressive."

When did he take the step toward her? His hand dropped to the counter on the other side of her arm, the edge of the plastic laminate digging into his palm.

Her chin tilted upwards. "Good," Maya crossed and uncrossed her arms as if she had nothing better to do. "Now that we're passed that."

Josh would never be able to remember which one of them moved forward first, but the hand that wasn't braced on the counter slid over her hip and up her spine to anchor itself in blonde hair.

Maya didn't pull away.

It's the first and last thought that runs through his mind as his lips descend on hers, tongue against the corner of her mouth before her hands run up his arms, nails catching his trapezius before digging into his scalp. There were several long moments where he was aware of nothing more than the taste of her lip gloss and the feeling of the tension sliding straight down her spine. As much as her body didn't retreat, it didn't get closer either, both of them settling into the moment delicately.

"Yo Matthews!" The saloon doors separating the kitchen from the rest of the apartment smacked against each other, and then the walls as Christian pushed his way into the small room. The hand that had weaved itself through the hair at the nape of Maya's neck flexed automatically. "Can you hand me the paper towels?"

He realizes after Maya's taken a step back, hands hanging awkwardly in the air for a quick second, that Christian isn't actually looking into the room. Josh doesn't wonder if it was because he caught a glimpse of what was happening and decided that deniability was best, or if whatever it was that caused the need for the paper towels was more entertaining than Christian believed the kitchen was. It's quite likely it's the latter, since Austin was on the other side of the door apologizing profusely to someone, the rest of the remainder of the party in various states of laughter.

"Here ya go, man." Josh pulls the entirety of the roll off of the holder by the stove, tossing it at the taller man. Christian's head snaps in his direction long enough to catch the roll cleanly in his elbow before slipping between the doors again.

When Josh catches Maya's eyes again, she's rolling her beer bottle between her palms, watching the glass intently. Her hair's been flipped back over her shoulder, and if he couldn't still taste her on his tongue, he could almost pretend that the last however many minutes were a product of his very vivid imagination. Relief flooded through his veins when he realizes that her smile is soft, but unguarded.

"Someone's gonna have to tell your brother that his do-gooder behavior speech needs work."

And he laughs, which is probably what she had in mind when she said it. "I'll be sure to mention it next time I see him." Somewhere before this scene began Josh actually had a beer of his own in the kitchen. When he realizes that he can't remember where he put it, he turns and relieve the refrigerator of a second one. "Which one of us gets to say that that was a bad idea?"

Her smile shifts slightly, and Maya nods without another word. She doesn't have to speak; they've already had this part of the conversation. And it's written all over her face.

It doesn't stop him from reaching for her again, biting back her name when she takes a step toward the doors. "It was bound to happen eventually." Her beer is finished, and she drops the empty into the sink before catching his eyes again. _Things don't mean more than they actually do._

He doesn't want to tell her that sometimes they're wrong. Not when she's slipping through the doors into the crowd, smile at the ready.

Josh tells himself that nothing's changed. He repeats it as she slides down next to him during the game of catchphrase that Allison 'just has to play'. It's the first thing on his lips when Maya insists that she can make it home on her own, after rolling her eyes when Christian informs her that there's a cab downstairs waiting for her. Echoes when the goodbye hugs start and she makes sure that his isn't shorter than the one that she gives Austin, because they're staying to help clean up before heading home themselves.

And when she kisses his cheek, lips grazing the side of his mouth just as it had ten months earlier, he realizes that it's not entirely true.

But it's not up to him.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coming Soon:
> 
> ]It's entirely likely I kissed Josh last nite.
> 
> Lucas was suddenly thankful that he showered when he returned home from the party his roommate drug him to the night before.
> 
> Just how hungover are you right now?


	15. Interlude: Little Did You Know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Precedent dictated that after the read notification popped up under his last message, Lucas had roughly a minute and a half before his phone would ring. He used that time to grab a shirt from the clean laundry pile that had yet to make it into a drawer and shrugging it on over his boxers. When the thrill of FaceTime alerted him that his hunch had been right, he hit the button without even bothering to look at his phone.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows» Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 2,974  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in College, Josh is has graduated NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

**I think I kissed Josh last nite.**

It's not the text message Lucas thought he was waking up to Friday morning, but it certainly did him better than the lukewarm coffee his roommates left him.

He doesn't even bother to hide his laugh.

**Isn't that the kind of thing one remembers?**

Because Maya had been completely drunk only two times in her young life, and neither one of those gave her the benefit of having no recollection of her actions the following morning. The ellipses bubble appeared for a moment, stopped, and then showed up again.

When R2D2 announced another message had been received, he thumbed the screen to make it light up again.

**It's entirely likely I kissed Josh last nite.**

Lucas was suddenly thankful that he showered when he returned home from the party one of his roommates drug him to the night before.

**Just how hungover are you right now?**

Precedent dictated that after the read notification popped up under his last message, Lucas had roughly a minute and a half before his phone would ring. He used that time to grab a shirt from the clean laundry pile that had yet to make it into a drawer and shrugging it on over his boxers. When the thrill of FaceTime alerted him that his hunch had been right, he hit the button without even bothering to look at his phone.

"You're an ass."

He didn't bother to tell her that that didn't make him wrong.

Lucas set his phone on the lightning dock and shook his head, moving around the bed to try to locate more clothing to put on the lower half of his body. "Good morning to you too, sweetheart." He could hear her grumbling around a coffee cup. "How did Auggie's thing go?"

"Really?" When he finally turned to look at her, Maya's lips were so taut they were white. "I give you kissing Josh, and you ask about Auggie."

He pulled his jeans on smoothly, not bothering to button them as he moved back around his bed. "I figured you'd get there by yourself," he admitted honestly.

Maya's face disappeared from the frame for a second, giving him a very good look at the dime nestled against her sternum, before sliding back down, hair pulled back away from her face. "The school thing went great," she sat back on the desk chair in her dorm room, leaning back a little too much for Lucas's liking. "We only had one major accident and I made $25 in tips." That was before she put money back in the jar to start the next shift off, and after the mother of the child that went completely Chernobyl dropped a handful of cash into the jar. "Apparently the PTA is already considering asking her to do the Christmas party."

"That should be fun." He reached for the phone again, holding it up so he could head toward the kitchen. "You gonna work that one too?"

"As long as finals are done." She seemed to freeze for a moment, as if considering the words that had just left her mouth and took a breath.

Lucas just laughed, "your heart rate return to normal yet?" He asked with a quick wink.

"I hate you."

Propping his phone against the toaster, Lucas shook his head. "If that were true, you and I wouldn't be having this conversation." He poured his cold coffee down the sink and reached for the Tupperware container that he kept hidden in the nook above the fridge. While he preferred the coffee pot that was situated on the other side of the counter – beans were cheaper than k-cups, and not all poor college students' stereotypes were without basis – he had neither the desire nor the need to brew an entire pot. He grabbed a cup at random, dropping it into the Keurig and slipping his mug under the spout. As the machine sputtered to life, he turned back to his best friend. "And you never answered my first question?"

The screen seemed to pause for a moment, as Maya went back to check her messages, and when she returned, her smile was tight. "Yes, that is generally something someone would remember."

"Now who's being the ass?"

Seemingly against her own volition, Maya's lips turned up. "I'm not hung-over."

Lucas took a moment to appreciate the way the light from her dorm room window caught her eyes. "You're not." He agreed. "So why are we uncertain that you and 'Uncle Boing' locked lips last night?"

As if someone had hit the switch, her iris's darkened. "It's not so much that I'm uncertain," she started slowly.

When the Keurig stopped, he absently reached into the cabinet for the non-dairy creamer. "Are we in denial?"

Her eyes narrowed then, peering straight into the camera. "You got a frog in your pocket?" There was a laugh, and Lucas honestly wasn't sure which one of them it came from, and he turned his full attention back to the phone while taking a sip. " _We_ aren't sure who actually started it," she said after a full minute.

Lucas didn't lower his mug, allowing it to hide the wry smile he knew was tugging at his lips.

"One second he's apologizing for Hamilton – which I told him wasn't his fault by the way –" Maya gesticulated wildly with the hand that wasn't holding the phone. "And then I actually told him why I started with the crazy.." It had only taken Lucas a week and a half to convince her that pretending the tension didn't exist wasn't good for any of them.

But he held off his applause as he dropped himself onto the couch.

"I thought it was a good talk." She finished with a huff, throwing herself backwards on her bed. "And then…" Her entire face scrunched and she groaned harshly. "Seriously, why couldn't he suck at just  _one_  thing?"

Rolling his eyes, Lucas just sighed. "Not that I'm not one hundred percent willing to finish this conversation," he caught her eyes and nodded softly. "But isn't kissing boys generally Riley's department?" He almost retracted the comment when her entire face contorted.

"Yes." Her body jerked up again, and Lucas almost had to close his eyes to keep from getting dizzy. "Of course!" And the sarcasm was out. "Because I'm the kind of best friend that's going to interrupt Riles's Intro to Psych lecture with the news that – yet again – I can't control myself and I more or less molested her uncle in Christian's kitchen."

Well at least he finally understood why she was upset. "Is the location going to be on the test?"

Eyes blown wide, Maya shrieked, " _Lucas Tristan_!"

"First of all," he started, sitting up a little straighter. "Take a damn breath."

She did.

Two in fact.

"Now." He almost wished that he had had the frame of mind to answer this call on his laptop because then he wouldn't have to hold his phone while he navigated the minefield that was Maya Hart. "Is the part that's bothering you how good it was?" When did this become his life? Seriously? What did he do to deserve waking up to this? While he and Maya had called audibles quite a few times in their sordid relationship, they'd never actually had a conversation about the way that they guy she was putting him on hold for made her feel, or vice versa. "Did Joshua Matthews 'rock your world' and you're terrified that that means that your little crush isn't over?"

"'Rocked my world'?" Maya's breathing had returned to normal, as if she too had finally realized that absurdity of this conversation, and shook her head. "I wouldn't go that far." Her face scrunched again as she thought. "I mean, I don't have a whole lot to compare it to, Cowboy." While her tone was playful, her eyes were Wide. "You're the only person I've kissed in the last six months."

"I don't recall you complaining, Shortstack."

Tongue in cheek, Maya's smile was back. "If I ever start, you have permission to smack me." He nodded, happy that he could, at least, get a smile. "But we weren't talking about how awesome you are at everything."

"No, you were rapidly making me question why I returned your text this morning." He twisted slightly and flopped backward on the couch. "I don't need to know how good it was, or any details, really." He wouldn't be aware of it until much, much later, but his own smile had faded and his eyes narrowed. "What I want to know is what's got you so freaked you're trying to deny this kisses existence."

He should have known that it wouldn't be that easy.

There was a noise behind her and Maya turned, motioning to someone off-screen. "I forgot I promised Renee that she and I could grab breakfast before class."

He refused to tell her that it was more perfectly timed than he was comfortable with.

Instead, he locked eyes with her and shook his head. "Text me," he commanded.

"I will." A quick kiss and a hand gesture, and she was gone.

He wasn't sure how long he sat there, staring at the ceiling fan and trying to gather his thoughts. But when his phone beeped again, the twinkle from Back to the Future a refreshing change from this morning's events, and he didn't bother to look at the message itself as he thumbed over to his call log, holding down the number 4 until speed dial took over.

Farkle answered on the second ring, hyper-caffeinated, "what's up man" giving him just what he needed for his shoulders to relax.

* * *

He'd almost given up on her actually doing what she said she would.

The most he'd gotten from Maya during the day was a snap of her behind the counter at  _Topanga's_  with the caption 'service was slow, I had to make my own,' and an Instagram picture of her latest English Lit essay (she got a 92). She didn't text him directly about anything else. And he was trying to figure out just how he was going to broach the conversation again without threatening to get Riley involved for the bulk of the day.

Lucas had been on his way home from a late dinner in the dining hall – Fridays meant The Animal Body and Cell Biology and Genetics back to back, which made for a long day – when his favorite little droid reminded him that he hadn't silenced his phone before entering the lecture hall.

He didn't want to admit that his first thought was about how she was planning on dodging the subject this time.

**There are too many ways this could go wrong.**

So it seemed that they were jumping straight into the deep end. He couldn't help but be a little relieved that she was closing herself off this time. Not that he didn't mean what he said earlier. Lucas was there for whatever Maya needed him to be, but it was so much easier for him not to have to do it with a smile on his face. Faux cheerfulness was just too damn tiring.

 **It was just one kiss**. He reminded her carefully.

When she didn't respond, he took a breath. A trill ran down his spine at the thought of helping her work through this if her first kiss with Josh had ended the same way theirs had, half dressed with her on top of Shawn's kitchen counter. Sometimes he still had a problem looking Hunter in the eye.

He was almost officially halfway back to the townhouses when his phone chirped again.

**One kiss with my best friend's uncle.**

**And it's not like there's not a single member of that damn family that doesn't want to talk things to death.**

**Auggie**. He typed without thinking. The text bubble appeared and disappeared, and he was only sure she was trying to come up with a suitable insult for him.  **Ava's got him trained pretty well**. Lucas amended.

One minute, then another, and Lucas finally gave up waiting for her to respond, hitting the word next to her name and then the phone icon. After the first two rings he honestly thought she might be trying to ignore him. He didn't need her to say 'hello' when the call finally connected. Which was good, because she didn't.

"Can I make a suggestion?" There was a faint 'mm-hmm' and Lucas realized that he had come to a dead stop next to a light post. "Don't make this a thing." He wasn't sure about her, but suddenly he had a flashback of a lifetime ago, sitting way too close on a hotel bed.

She repeated his words cautiously as if it was the first time it occurred to her to take a step back.

"At least not yet." Lucas dropped his water bottle on the bench next to him. "I mean, you've had more exciting first kisses," and okay, it was possible that he trying to do a bit more than give her perspective.

There was a pause and then, "really?"

"You've been stressing about this all day," he said at last. "And exactly how far has it gotten you?"

She apparently shifted on her bed, the microphone on her headset rubbing in her hair. "Nee bought me breakfast," she said after a moment, "And I got a pedi after my last class."

"Because that's  _totally_  what I meant." He laughed anyway. "You kissed, and then you forced normal on him." Lucas didn't have to be told this, he knew how Maya worked. "Why don't you hold the freak out until you actually have something to freak out about?"

She shifted again, and from his side he could hear her take a sip of something. "And what if there is something to freak out about?" She said at last. "What happens if I can't get ahead of this?"

And that was the entire reason why Lucas was willing to sit here and discuss relationships with Maya. Because behind the iridescent vivacious woman she projected to the world, Maya Hart was still absolutely terrified of being wrong. Most wrong decisions were minimal. A grade here, an acquaintance there. It was inconsequential, she could anticipate those. Those she could get in front of.

"You and I are on the phone at least once a day." It was texts and pictures mostly, but they talked just as often.

It was quiet for too long. Lucas actually had to check his phone to make sure she hadn't disconnected. "This isn't the kind of crazy you signed up for." Maya's voice was suddenly too small.

But he had surrendered to the push and pull of Maya Hart their junior year of high school because it was what they both needed. He wasn't going to give it up because she needed more than he did today. "I signed up for Maya Hart." He reminded her carefully, "No matter the kind of crazy."

"You most likely need a shower."

The laughter was back, and Lucas took that as a win. He grabbed his bottle and turned back toward the townhouses. "I can't smell myself, and I've only had a lab and two lectures today."

He could practically feel her scrunching her face up. "I promised Riley a FaceTime before I went out with Ali tonight."

"Leave the crazy at home, will ya?" It was as close to a 'go have fun' as he was going to give her after today.

"You coming home for Veteran's weekend?"

The Minkus's always had a big to-do for the vets at Minkus International the Saturday before Veterans day. If the weather was decent, they would most likely spend the weekend at the Hamptons house, pretending that they hadn't spent the last four months in separate cities. Even Zay had managed to find a way to get out of his Friday classes to fly up and hang out. "I wouldn't miss it." He promised her. "You want me to come out Friday morning?"

"Thursday night would be better for me."

Lucas laughed, making a mental note to text his mother the second they were off the phone. "Well if that's better for you." Another laugh and Lucas smiled. "Text me in the morning."

"Night."

Phone disconnected - and a quick message to his Mama - and Lucas finally made it back to his on-campus apartment. He threw his bottle in the trash and immediately went for a beer in the bottom of the fridge. After a full day of the life of Maya, it was going to be a stay in with the guys kind of night


	16. Part X: Aftertaste

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "This is not a date."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick Author's Note: Okay readers, I have decided to share a little piece of myself here with you guys. In order to help me invision the various situations I put out characters into, and to set the mood, I have created a Polyvore and a few playlists that match up with my vision of who the characters are.
> 
> The Polyvore can be found at and-the-moments-gone.polyvore.com/?filter=collections  
> It currently houses the clothing worn by Maya and Riley in this story (more to come). I also update it every few chapters, in case you're interested.
> 
> I'm currently working on the creation of album covers for my 8tracks playlists. If anyone is interested in the songs that will be appearing there - or has a better understanding of Photoshop than I do and can lend me a hand - leave it in your review!

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 3,800  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in College, Josh is in his last year at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

 

"This is  _not_  a date."

It was the third time she'd announced it since he'd met her outside her residence hall at promptly six forty-five.

Josh wondered if she'd make it four before they had even gotten to their destination. He looked down at his sport coat, button-down, and slacks – sans tie, Maya had been extremely specific about that – and decided he was extremely well dressed for just hanging out. He would have said so too, if not for the look on Maya's face as she straightened her skirt for the third time in the cab as well.

Her faculty advisor, and so far favorite professor ever, had snuck Maya two tickets to the fall semester's BFA Exhibition and reception in order to help her see where her current course of study was going to come to fruition in four years. From everything he'd understood it was common for freshmen to be invited to the exhibit itself, but neither he nor any of his friends had heard of a freshman being given tickets to the curatorial reception held opening night. After swearing to be on time and to not embarrass him, Maya had spent the next half hour grilling Professor Torreano's teaching assistant on proper attire and etiquette.

Amelia had smiled her way through the evening study session at Christian's apartment when relating Maya's reaction to everyone the next day, complete with worry that Maya seemed torn on who the second ticket should go to. Although semi-friendly and eager to learn, Maya hadn't managed to make very many friends in the art program – and those she had she hadn't wanted to rub their face in the fact that Torreano had given her the tickets instead of someone else. Lia had told them that she felt sorry for the blonde, poor girl damn near breaking into tears when she realized that the reception was on a Tuesday night and Riley wouldn't be able to come to town. She'd offered to go shopping with her the weekend before the reception to help, though, and Josh couldn't help but be appreciative of the wine red lace-trim high-low pleated dress that they had come up with.

"Nope," Maya was muttering to herself. "Definitely not."

It had actually been Cory's idea for Josh to attend the function with her, not noticing the tension between the two of them the week before during Sunday dinner. When Maya asked Topanga if she was free, because if she was going to be terrified in front of her professor and peers she wanted her Amazon role-model to show her how it was done, Cory had offered up Josh when Topanga was forced to decline due to an early court appearance the next morning since, 'you probably already know half of these students anyway'.

He probably would have told Cory that it was a bad idea if it weren't for the fact that Maya was trying so very hard for things to be normal with them.

Beside him she murmured to herself again, and this time, he couldn't help the laugh.

"Which one of the two of us are you trying to convince of that?" Her entire body stiffened then, and Josh leaned to his side of the cab in order to get a better look at her. "I'm kidding." He caught her eye and smiled. "For the most part."

"You're not funny." Maya readjusted her clutch on her lap and took a deep breath.

Another laugh, this time brushing a stray piece of hair that had escaped Maya's messy side chignon off of her shoulder. "I honestly can't remember the last time you publically showed this much crazy." Her head turned sharply, and Josh was suddenly struck by the way the blue in her eyes popped against her muted makeup. "You could have turned Cory down when he came up with it."

Maya seemed to consider his words. "Then I'd have to do this solo." Her shoulders relaxed, or at least they tried to, he reached for another snippet of hair and she had to force herself not to flinch. "Which could very well end just as badly."

He hadn't directed his fingers to brush her chin, or to direct her to turn her face so her eyes met his. "Tonight is not going to be a disaster," Josh told her simply. "You're going to go in there, talk art with the graduate students and rub elbows with the Steinhardt board, and you're going to astonish them all with your epicness and your elegant eloquence."

There was a beat, and he was almost worried about going too far when her smile caught up to him. "Did you swallow a thesaurus sometime in your youth?"

"No," he shook his head and caught a glimpse of the banner that the school had put in front of the Grey Art Museum. "But I'm pretty sure Morgan used one to beat the hell out me at least once."

He was lying, they both knew it. There was a twelve-year difference between him and his older sister, and there was no way that Amy would have allowed it. That didn't stop Maya envisioning the only blonde Matthews child chasing her wayward brother around their parent's house, book in hand.

"Okay, you caught me." He reached into the pocket of his blazer, holding up his phone. "I'm having Cory send me inspirational texts."

She actually snorted then, her hand coming up to make sure that she didn't, somehow, ruin her makeup.

"There's a real smile."

The cab slowed to a stop outside of the gallery, and Josh had the cash ready. It may not be a date, but his mother had taught him that a lady never pays. In the split second between paying the driver and him helping Maya out of the cab, he wondered what kind of reaction he would get if he had said that aloud. He settled for holding her clutch so she could check her hair and makeup before they headed up the steps, not bothering to offer her his elbow this time.

He did make sure to catch her just as they stepped through the double doors, stopping at the coat check. "You need to remember something." Josh had to take a deep breath as Maya bit her lip, head tilting to get a better look at him. "You're Maya Hart." Their hands touched, and Josh wasn't sure which one of them had moved to make that happen. "And you are worth more than anyone else in this room."

The slow smile that pulled across her cheeks did nothing to stem the urge to kiss her. " _That_  was Riley."

Josh recovered quickly enough to spin her around and help her remove her jacket. "Smart ass."

Whatever Maya was about to say was lost in the murmur of Amelia slipping up behind them. "You're here!" The brunette stole Maya's jacket out of Josh's hands and snapping her fingers in order to get him to remove his own. "Torreano's already started the list of people you're going to meet." She handed the coats to the elderly man behind the desk and didn't wait for the slip, hooking her elbow through Maya's.

So much for needing him, Josh thought as he took the slip, flipping open his wallet and sliding it next to his ID so he was less likely to lose it. With one eye on Maya and Lia, he made his way to the bar. With a glass of sparkling cider in each hand, he trailed back over toward his non-date.

* * *

It actually amazed Josh that he managed not to get bored.

Dinner had come and gone with little fanfare. They had been seated next to Amelia and her boyfriend – a fellow artist who had a few pieces showcased in the gallery that evening – and he and Josh had snuck in a quick conversation about the Knicks while the girls were chatting with the Department Chair about impressionists. He'd also allowed Maya to lead him through the gallery, pointing out the students that she recognized, and scolding him for making fun of the pieces that she didn't.

He was in the middle of a particularly brutal commentary on an abstract painting that the thought looked like a pig when he saw Maya tense, eyes wide.

"Art may be subjective Mister Matthews," the distinctly male voice said carefully, "but you're not alone in the room. And you should be aware that your voice carries."

He, at least, had the frame of mind to appear sheepish, wiping his palm on his thigh before turning slightly. "Duly noted."

The older man smiled then, holding out a hand for him to shake. "How'd you even get in?"

He took a step back then, holding out his own arm to gesture towards Maya. "Professor Ritter, I'd like to introduce you to Maya Hart."

Maya's shoulders had dropped when she realized that the professor had been more amused by Josh's antics than upset. "You're one of John's, aren't you?" Ritter regarded her with a wide smile, nodding to himself. "His scholarship kid."

The only thing keeping her smile in place was the Hart will of steel. "Yes sir," she nodded along quickly.

"How in the hell did Matthews land someone as spectacular as you, Miss Hart?"

Josh caught the way her eyes bugged for a fraction of a second before she turned to him. "Ritter's the Urban Design APD." He nodded to the man again. "And since it's considered an independent study course, I spend a lot of time in his office."

"Which reminds me," Ritter pulled his phone from his pocket, thumbing open the calendar. "I'm going to call Mitchell about you getting Thursday off." Josh took a second to step closer to Maya and whisper that Mitchell was one of the Intern Directors at SOM. "I'm taking over a lecture series at the Abu Dhabi campus next week and I want to move our appointment up before I leave."

"I think I can manage that," Josh pulled his own device out then, making a quick note before sliding it back into his pocket. "And I haven't landed Maya," he corrected slowly.

Maya wasn't sure whether or not to be offended by the fact that Josh was making that distinction. The words 'this is not a date' rang through her mind and she almost kicked herself. Of course he would be as adamant as she was, it had been her decision after all.

"That actually sounds like a personal problem." Ritter's smile was still wide, and Maya decided that she wouldn't be upset at him for it. "Beautiful and talented young woman like her," Ritter smiled at her again, and she couldn't help but smile back.

"I think that's my cue to see if you'd like another drink." It took Maya a good second to realize that Josh was looking at her. She certainly didn't know when it was that he had appropriated her glass. "If I stand here much longer the only thing we'll be discussing Tuesday is why I'm perpetually single."

Ritter shrugged. "I'm not seeing a problem with that."

Josh's hand drifted to Maya's hip and he caught her eyes with his. "I'll be right back." He seemed to whisper. "Listen to none of what he tells you."

"I'll try," Maya promised sternly.

Two steps away Josh listened as his professor had steered the conversation to Maya's own work and the relation between that and what was currently being showcased. He deposited the glasses on a tray in the corner of the gallery room and marveled at the fact that it only took three steps into the ante-gallery to find a member of the catering staff holding out fresh glasses.

"Did you lose your date?" Lia stepped out from behind one of the sculptures, boyfriend on her arm.

"Ritter stole her." Josh gestured vaguely in the direction he had just come, not at all surprised that Maya and his advisor had apparently been joined by another art professor since he had left. From his position, he could tell that she was terrified, albeit ecstatic. "And do  _not_  let her hear you call it a date."

"Which one of you is in denial?" He wasn't sure how Lia had managed her tongue in cheek smile.

His eye roll was automatic. "Neither." Why did no one believe them? "She just couldn't find anyone else to come with her."

Kissing her date on the cheek so Jackson could join the conversation happening in the next room, Lia watched as Josh smiled when Maya did. "I remember," but Lia's smile was too knowing, and Josh could see the wheels in her head turning.

This would be the part where he reiterated that Maya was his niece's best friend and that she'd been in the family almost as long as he had. Then again, the more he reminded himself of that, the more he realized that even flirting with half the ideas that had been running through his head that night were accompanied by big flashing neon signs. The friends outing was working though, with minimal hiccups, so he was hopeful.

He didn't realize that he was staring at Maya, or that she and Jackson had begun to discuss the piece on the wall behind her with the two professors. There was also a moment of brief panic when Josh realized the piece he was making fun of belonged to Jackson.

It must have shown on his face because a second later Lia let out a laugh. "I hate that canvas too," she whispered none too softly. "But Miller loves it, so Jack put it in."

"I was recently reminded that art is subjective," he cracked back. Maya's eyes caught his from the other side of the room, and Josh didn't hesitate to nod to Lia before maneuvering between the patrons to provide her drink.

"You don't have to stay for the settling of the bids," the older professor was saying, gesturing to the pieces around the room. "We could be here half the night "

Everything about Maya told him that she was relieved that he had shown up, and she'd been given a reprieve. "Only if you're sure," she caught herself saying.

But the woman was already waving Maya off. "It was lovely to meet you, Miss Hart."

Josh nodded to Ritter over the top of Maya's head, and he knew the second he dropped the palm of his hand to her lower back to lead her from the room that he was going to be hearing about it at their next meeting.

They took the long way back to the antechamber, Maya commenting on almost every single piece between the two. Josh watched as she stopped to say something to one of the artists who apparently had a piece purchased that evening, both girls feeding off of each other's excitement. He was completely unaware as to how Maya knew the girl – or even her name – but he stood back and allowed Maya to share in the moment. When they finally reached the entrance, he pulled his wallet, handing the clerk a few ones along with their stubs.

"Well you have had a hell of a night," he whispered to her as he helped her slide her coat back on. "I don't think there's a person here who doesn't know Maya Hart."

"Half of them will forget me the second they get home," she was beaming, no matter what she said, and Josh rested one hand low on her hip so he could urge her forward and grab the door at the same time.

He held it through both of them exiting, and he almost apologized for his hand flexing against her when he came to a full stop to hold the door open for an elderly couple exiting after them. Maya didn't seem to notice though, caught somewhere between pride, joy, and deflating adrenaline. She waved to someone further down the sidewalk, canvas box tucked against their side.

"We both know that's not true." Josh wasn't sure which one of them stopped short, but Maya turned and leaned against the no parking sign. They would have to wander closer to Waverly in order to properly hail a cab, but he wasn't in any hurry if she wasn't. "Ritter knew your name before I introduced you."

"You sure you didn't slip him some cash during your last appointment?" The sarcasm didn't quite reach her eyes though.

Josh leaned into her, arm braced above her head on the post. "Well I am making the big bucks," he considered. Her eyes caught his then, and they seemed to realize just how close they had gotten in the last few seconds. "Come on," taking a step back Josh held out his arm. "Let's get you home before someone tries to steal you."

"They'd bring me back," she said after a moment, stopping just long enough to readjust the strap of her heel against her ankle. "I've been told I'm an acquired taste."

"That's not a risk I'm willing to take." He spun her then, for no better reason than to listen to her laugh.

Maya stopped short on the sidewalk, watching the cabs fight for position on the curb. She'd tried to be so careful all night, and was trying to combat the astonishment that it was now over. There was also a not so small part of herself that was wondering where the flirting had come from. She had decided that they were friends. And friends didn't flirt. A buzz from her purse contradicted her, and her favorite droid seemed to remind Maya that it was entirely possible for friends to flirt. She didn't reach for her phone; Lucas was most likely just checking to see if she had made it through the night with her nerves intact.

Her next smile was slower. Flirting was fine, she could stay ahead of that. She was used to that. "Is this the part where you insist on seeing me to my door?"

"This isn't a date, Hart." He reminded her with flourish. "Which means I'll pay the cabbie and trust you can get from the street to your bed on your own." He stepped up then, holding his arm out and catching the eye of the taxi driver in the yellow cab closest to them. Josh nodded toward Maya, and the driver flicked the top light off.

Shaking her head, Maya laughed. "And how long have those been the rules?" She wondered aloud.

He shrugged. "Since now?"

Josh should have known that he had just opened himself up for more teasing. After all, they had managed to banish the awkwardness early on in favor of their evening. "You're sure that's the only difference?"

It was her fault. He was fully prepared to blame his next set of actions solely on Maya and her reckless half grin. Had she just given him a hug and climbed into the cab, nothing else would have happened that night. They would have safely navigated their way through their first outing as new friends.

But she hadn't.

So he matched her grin, bracing one arm on the top of the car. "There's another."

He watched her eyes flick from his eyes to his lips and back again. "Only two differences between an evening with a friend and a date with Josh Matthews?" Maya leaned back to get a better look at his face. "Well, now you've got me curious." This was rapidly approaching the point where it was no longer harmless flirting, but Maya bit her lip anyway. She was still in control. "What's the second? So, you know, I can avoid it in the future."

She was too flirty, her eyes too bright. Josh realized a little too late that she knew what was coming before he did.

"The end of a date looks something like this," he wasn't entirely sure that he had actually said the words, before sliding his hand against the lapel of her jacket and caressing her neck. Maya was the one to pull closer, of that he was positive. The hand that held her clutch grasped his jacket, dragging herself up onto her toes so she could meet his kiss head on.

Josh tried not to count the differences between the last time they were in this position and now. It was less frantic, slower. Maya seemed perfectly content to curl her body into his and allow him to lead. She snaked her tongue between them, and he smiled at the taste of carbonated mint. His touch was lighter, and Maya's nails didn't embed themselves into his skin. There was also no Christian this time, no Austin or messes to clean, and when her breath finally hitched, and Maya dropped her heels so air could fill her lungs, he didn't think twice about following her down, stooping slightly to get one more peck in before reality came calling.

When their eyes locked again, Josh watched a hint of uncertainty flutter through her face, before her smile brought the twinkle back.

"But this isn't a date," he told her carefully, slipping around her to open the door to the cab.

"This isn't a date," Maya repeated. Her mouth opened as if she had something else to add, before running a hand from his cheek to his sternum. "Good night Josh."

He nodded gently, his lips mouthing back to her. When she was fully seated, he slid the door shut again, waving dumbly. It wasn't until the cab was out of sight and he had hailed himself another one that Josh realized that she had gotten out of him paying for her ride home. He thought about scolding her via text message – because calling her so soon after her leaving him just screamed pathetic – but opted out, choosing instead to send a quick message to Austin, telling him he was on his way home and asking if they still had the curry in the fridge.

Josh got back a thumbs up emoji, and a picture of the lone cardboard box on the top shelf reminding him that one of them really would need to get to the store sometime in the near future. They tried to keep a schedule, they really did, it just didn't always seem to work out.

Opening up the following text, again from his roomie, Josh lost it in the back seat, laughing far too long and way too hard for him to be sure he was still sane.

**How was your date?**

Josh contemplated the many different answers that he could have responded with. None of them seemed right. He leaned back in against his seat and shook his head.

**It wasn't a date.**

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Coming Soon:
> 
> "We're friends," she said calmly, her wringing hands betraying her facade. "And sometimes friends kiss, right?"


	17. Part XI: Bumper Cars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Her step was light, and when she positioned herself on the end, facing him, he realized that she really was going to skirt right over their recurring issue. Don't do it, his mind cautioned him, even as he was sitting up and moving his iPad off of the arm of the chair. Don't bring it up. "You kissed me." It wasn't exactly what he wanted to say, and definitely not how he planned to say it, but it came out anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick Author's Note: I just wanted to take a minute and recognize two very special gals who have kept me going on this story. ElleRose77, you are a WONDERFUL beta, and I'm so thankful to have you there to catch all of my mistakes. And Hanna, thank you for being there to listen to me ramble. Even when I'm putting off chapters, you still understand.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 4,683  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are in College, Josh is in his last year at NYU, Cory still lives in denial.

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song  _Sooner or Later_ and I don't own that either.

* * *

There was nothing Josh loved more than getting a frantic phone call from his brother the night before resuming his schedule, after almost an entire week off from both internship and school. He'd spent Thanksgiving in Philly with the bulk of his family, trying very hard not to stay attached to his phone. Not that it rang. He had gotten the same generic "Happy Thanksgiving" message that Maya seemed to send out to everyone. Well, generic in that it was two buttons away from being in a mass text. There was absolutely nothing generic about the digital canvas that she had created a visionary cornucopia she had doodled 'Happy Thanksgiving' onto the corner of.

It had taken him a lot longer than he was willing to admit to type back a quick 'you too'.

He'd, at least, included a turkey emoji.

But none of that was relevant as his brother was practically screaming in his ear about forgetting a dinner with the Michelson's,– and that he had sworn to his wife that he was perfectly capable of arranging proper care for the child they still had at home.

"I need you!"

It actually didn't matter that he had told his brother that he was on his way – twice – or that he was actually in the process of meeting his brother at the Bleecker Street station, coming up the stairs with one hand on his bag to try to keep his balance. "I'm here." He ended the call and tapped his brother on the shoulder, shaking his head. "You officially have an Auggie-sitter."

"You're the best little brother ever." He was being hugged and drug up the street all at the same time. It would have been disorienting if he were actually able to see where he was going.

"And I shall continue to be unless one of us trips and we get run over." Cory seemed to stop moving then, hands still in place. "Halfway there, buddy." Another beat and Cory's hand finally dropped. "There we go."

He had another minute to breathe before Cory grabbed his arm and propelled him down the sidewalk. "And if she asks, this is not last minute."

It was a shame that even lying for him most likely wouldn't help his brother. Topanga was bound to know that Cory had forgotten. After all, not only was his wife one of the most brilliant people on the planet, she probably knew Cory better than he knew himself. And if he was this squirrely on the phone with her before he called and begged Josh for help, there was no way that he could possibly hide it when they got to the house.

But Josh nodded slowly all the same, following Cory down the sidewalk quickly. "Do you have a problem with me ordering takeout?" He asked when their pace slowed slightly.

Cory shook his head. "As long as Auggie eats, I don't care what you feed him."

He tried not to chuckle. He was unsuccessful.

Instead, Josh simply followed Cory up the steps and into the building, giving the door a good shove to make sure it clicked behind him. When they got to his front door, however, Cory paused, straightened, and took a deep breath. There was actually a moment when it actually seemed like he would be able to hold himself together. Then he swung open the door.

"Maya."

Josh physically slammed into his brother's back as Cory came to an abrupt halt in his doorway. He coughed, trying to figure out the best way to move around the five foot ten frame. "What?"

"Maya," Cory repeated, finally taking a step forward, "Is in my kitchen." The older Matthews paused again, although this time Josh was able to actually enter the living room. "Why is Maya in my kitchen?"

Clacking announced the arrival of Cory's wife, signaling that not only had she realized that he had forgotten dinner, but he was late and more than a little underdressed. "Maya so graciously agreed to give up her shift at the café tonight to keep an eye on our son." She handed her husband a new tie and laid a blazer over the back of the couch. "Last week," she yanked the tie he'd worn to school off of her husband's neck, not bothering to pay attention to the fact that he was still staring at Maya and Auggie. "When I realized you didn't really mean it when you said you'd handle this."

"I had it handled." Cory's indignant shriek had almost everyone stifling laughter. Then he turned to Josh. "See. Brother." He gestured from his wife to Josh. "Handled."

Maya chuckled again, finally admitting that she had been paying attention. "I'm still getting paid," she stage whispered to Josh, enjoying the fact that Cory seemed to still be struck dumb.

"I was doing it for free," Josh held up his hand carefully, pulling his bag over his shoulder.

Maya's eyebrow quirked. "You should have held out for a better offer."

It was Josh's turn to laugh. "I'm starting to get that."

Topanga was still staring at her husband as he tied his tie. "And how long ago did you 'handle' getting Josh to watch Auggie?"

"Say nothing," Cory whispered to his brother through gritted teeth.

Instead, Josh dropped his bag on the couch and turned toward the table. "You guys decide on dinner?"

"Auggie picked Pagani," Maya reached around the kid for the takeout menu sitting on the counter, sliding it toward Josh.

"Sounds good to me." He flipped the paper open and smiled at the gold stars that Topanga had taken to marking what everyone wanted on menus. "You want me to call it in?"

The blonde just shook her head. "There's an app for that now." Keeping one eye on Auggie and his math, she thumbed open her phone, tabbed over to the correct screen, and hit the app. Then she flipped her phone around and slid it across the table. "Just make sure you pick 'cash'." She gave him a quick wink before glancing back at Auggie's work and returning to her own reading.

After sufficiently changing and reprimanding her husband, Topanga slid her own jacket on and reached for her purse. "We shouldn't be out too late," and as much as Cory hoped, he wasn't as successful at pointing behind her back and pantomiming the words 'she's lying!' A quick push later and the older Matthews was on his way to the front door. "Maya's got the cash for dinner, Auggie needs to be in bed by 9, and absolutely no video games until his homework's done."

One more blown kiss and the door closed behind them.

Taking a deep breath, Auggie leaned back in his chair. "I thought they'd never leave."

Thumbing through Maya's app, placing the dinner order, Josh spared a glance to his nephew. "Your mom been stressing about this for a while?"

"Edith Michaelson is on the review board for the partnership panel." While Topanga had long since made junior partner at her firm, getting to the next step had been a lot more work than she had been comfortable putting in while Riley was still in high school. Managing her work commitments with the café and two children's social schedules was definitely harder than juggling just Auggie. It probably helped that Maya had stepped up as much as possible at the café, and Katy had recommended an excellent manager when she'd gotten her acting break. "The board votes in January, and she doesn't think she'll be up for campaigning again if she doesn't get it."

"She'll get it." Josh passed the phone back across the table, wishing that he didn't have to pull himself up and go grab his bag. He still had thirty pages on the Economics of Urban Amenities that he had to get through before class tomorrow morning. He was halfway to the couch before he stopped to appreciate the fact that Maya was there for him to tag team Auggie with. There was actually a chance that he would be able to do it without staying up all night. It came with the incessant urge to double-check that they were both still comfortable with whatever the hell they were supposed to call their new normal. Maya caught his pause out of the corner of her eye, head tilting up slightly. Josh supposed that if she could avoid discussing it, so could he. For now.

He was drawn back to the table just in time to see Auggie slam his math book closed with a grunt. "Finally!" He shouted to the ceiling. "Can I play COD now?"

Just as Josh was about to say yes, he realized that the question was directed to the blonde. "As long as you wear your headset," she conceded. "I don't need to be reminded that Ava's mouth is filthier than mine." When Josh cocked an eyebrow at her, she nodded and mouthed, "You have  _no_  idea."

Television on, Auggie occupied, and Josh was finally able to get a good look at the woman in front of him. She was tired, and not in the way that he would actually comment on. Something told him that the weariness in her eyes had anything to do with lack of sleep. Instead, he dropped his texts on the table across from her, pulling his iPad folio out next, and slipping his hand along the bottom of his bag for his pen.

He could have sworn he could see a slow smile spread across Maya's lips as she regarded his work inspired study essentials. Her eyes cut to her own spiral bound notebook – grid instead of lined so she could doodle at regular intervals – and she shook her head before closing her eyes, leaning back on the bench.

"You okay?"

"Me? Yeah." Maya spared a glance to Auggie before running a hand through her hair. "Just winding down, I guess." She sighed, dropping the highlighter into the crease of the pages. "Last few weeks have been a little bizarre." Was Josh imagining it, or did Maya's glance actually drop to his lips. "And I think this was the first holiday I can remember that I was without at least one member of the Matthews clan."

Josh had found it odd as well that Maya hadn't joined them at his parent's house for the week. When he'd asked about it, Riley had launched into an incredibly detailed story about how Shawn had been invited to Martha's Vineyard with Jack and his family, and he'd invited Maya and her mom along because with her touring schedule Katy could be in town, but had absolutely no time to prepare. There may have been a little speculation that it meant that Katy and Shawn were going to give it another shot. Riley had also let it slip that Maya didn't know how to act around Jack, so she was spending the holiday hiding on the widows walk, sketchbook in one hand and phone in the other.

Due to the fact that Riley had frozen and mumbled something about 'ring power' after revealing that little tidbit, Josh chose to pretend that he'd never heard it. "That has the potential to be a little disorienting," he admitted with a smile, Auggie shouting 'die dirtbag' somewhere behind him.

"Just a little bit lonely," she granted. "Having Mom there was awesome, though." Maya's eyes lit up again, and Josh felt compelled to smile along with her. "And now Shawn's home for the month," another smile, this one slightly dimmer. "Which means that I have to adapt my studying to fit him – and that's if I decide to study at the apartment – I'm still trying to get used to Renee."

Transfers and move outs were a fact of college life. Sometimes students found that their expectation differed from reality so much that they couldn't cope. In Sarah's case, she went a tad too wild with the freshman partying. Halfway through their first semester, she pulled herself out of school and moved back to Seattle when she discovered she was pregnant. Maya wished that she could have said it surprised her. Housing certainly did, though, moving the girl that could very well be her evil twin in within a week of Sarah moving out. Maya's only actual downside to Renee was the fact that she didn't have a set study schedule, so it was extremely difficult to plan around her.

"Mid-terms kicked my ass," she admitted, "I'm  _terrified_  of finals."

"Why don't you come to my place?" The words were out of his mouth before he thought that they might be awkwardly perceived. Mayas eyes bugged and Josh suddenly felt the urge to backtrack. "I'm at S.O.M. most nights until 6, and Austin works at the student union on weekdays but we have a very strict study buddy policy." Said policy didn't technically go into effect until next week when finals crested over the horizon, but Josh was sure he could convince his roomie to help Maya out. "And looming finals means gourmet coffee, all you can eat Sour Patch Kids, and plenty of Red Bull."

Her smile dipped as she considered it. "That's a very convincing sales pitch, Matthews." She was leaning against the table on her elbows now, and it would take very little effort on his part to bridge the gap and brush his lips against hers. Not that he was thinking about kissing her again. His eyes dipped to her lips and he bit his lips as he shook his head. Not at all. "You sure that it won't be…" She licked her bottom lip absently, words failing.

"We're friends." He offered quickly. "And friends don't let friends fail finals."

Nodding to herself, Maya returned to her text. "I just might take you up on that," she said carefully.

* * *

Dinner was a flourish of activity – since Josh had demanded that Auggie eat it at the table like a real boy – with food trading, silverware passing, and maybe a touch of theft. He didn't even bother to rebuke Maya when she stole a grape tomato out of his folded chicken. He simply relieved her plate of gnocchi while Auggie distracted her with polenta. The kid successfully pulled Maya away from studying afterward, with a crack about her age and  _LittleBigPlanet_. Josh had even jumped from the table to the oversized chair so he could be a witness to the 'ass kickery' that was about to occur. He wasn't even about to point out the game didn't have a versus mode, so they would be forced to work together.

When eight-thirty rolled around, it hit him that he may have to be the adult in the room and force Auggie to prep himself for bed.

"Hate to do this to you, bud." The game had been paused, and Maya was holding up her phone. "But the rules and regulations state that this is your thirty-minute warning." The way she smiled over at the kid told Josh that she had been doing this for his brother more than she'd let on. "Are you showering tonight or in the morning?"

"Tomorrow." Showering in the morning meant an earlier wake-up, which wasn't a big deal for him. Auggie set the controller on the coffee table and turned. "If I get my face washed and teeth brushed, can we finish this level?"

Maya seemed to consider it for a minute. "Promise me you won't BS brushing your teeth?" She held her right hand up in a fist, friendship ring on full display.

"Promise,' Auggie spared a second to fist bump her offered hand, before turning and running full tilt to the bathroom.

"Did you just 'ring power' my nephew?" Josh ran a hand over his face.

There was a moment where Maya seemed to be considering it. "Not  _technically_ ," she allowed, sitting back on the couch and propping her feet up on the coffee table. "He and I just have this thing."

"A thing?" He sat up fully now, realizing that since moving the coffee table over so he could put his books on it, he was far closer to her than they originally thought. "Like a you and Riley thing, or a me and you thing –"

He was cut off by a laugh. "A me and Auggie thing." Maya paused to listen for the running of water before turning back to him. "I'm not sure if you noticed, but ten is definitely too young."

"It's only eight years." He dropped his pen onto the table, leaning in. "What's eight years in the history of love?"

It was Maya that kissed him this time, of that he was absolutely sure. He hadn't even been aware that she had switched positions until her lips were on his. It was quick and sweet, and Josh noted that Maya's tongue ran across his lips before she pulled back. His mouth opened, and Josh tried to take a deep breath before actually saying anything.

The thundering of feet curtailed any kind of conversation, though, and Auggie launched himself over the back of the couch and snatched his controller with one long motion. "Sackboy's back in action!"

And as per usual – and he suspected that she preferred it this way – Maya recovered faster than he did, seizing her own controller and hitting the button to resume the action. "Last level," she confirmed, doing everything in her power to not look back over to Josh. "Then you have to get to bed, and I can go back to memorizing impressionists."

"Does college completely suck?" The question was off-handed, and Josh threw a glance to where his nephew didn't even seem to be paying attention to the fact that he'd spoken. "All you talk about now is work."

"It doesn't suck," Maya shook her head, trying to get her Sackgirl up on the ledge to grab a sticker. "It's just kind of like high school on steroids."

"You get to pick your classes," Josh added slowly. "And your schedule, mostly." Auggie nodded, racing Maya to the next sticker. "You can sleep in most days." He wanted to point out that Maya didn't get out of bed until after nine for a class, but he didn't know if it was something that he should admit to knowing. "Although the tests are harder, and impending adulthood isn't always awesome."

His Sackboy fell off of a ledge, and Maya laughed. "But you have years before you have to think about any of that.  _Years_." They hit the last stage and Maya hung back, letting him direct her. "And many many more opportunities for me to say," they finished, the game saved and Maya dropped the controller on the couch beside her. "Bedtime!"

"That was almost adorable," Josh laughed as Auggie vaulted himself over the coffee table to give him a quick hug. "You need someone to tuck you in?"

The boy stopped, pulling back. "Can I get a story too?" Auggie's eyes were wide and he clutched at his uncle's arm. "And hot cocoa?"

Josh threw a questioning look to Maya, who simply smiled at him. "Do you usually get story time and hot cocoa?"

"Would I lie to you?"

Tapping drew him back to Maya, who shook her head slightly. "That wasn't a yes." Josh found that his head was shaking now as well. "How about you just go to bed?"

Auggie groaned, turning to Maya. "I was  _this_  close."

"I saw it," she stood. "Maybe next time, kiddo." Josh watched as they bumped fists again, and Maya pointed to the hallway. "I'll see you tomorrow?" Auggie nodded and shuffled out of the room. "Night Auggie!"

"'See you tomorrow?'" Maya was in the process of shutting down the Playstation and plugging the controllers in to charge. It brought him back to their previous conversation. "You and he have a date?"

The snort was unladylike and slightly painful. Maya's nose scrunched even as she wiped her face. "Auggie asked for my help in picking out a birthday present for Riley." She left the television on, flipping over to the Apple TV and syncing it with her phone. "He's meeting me at the café so we can go shopping."

He caught her glance as she scrolled through her phone, pulling up a playlist simply labeled 'study more'. The screen told him that the first song on the list was by Andra Day. "That's this weekend, isn't it?" Josh swore he was better with dates than his history was proving him to be.

"Yep," Maya turned then, pocketing her phone. "Your niece turns the big one eight next Sunday." There was a glimmer in her eye as she spoke about it. "I'm taking the train up Friday night to spend the weekend with her."

"Then I'll just have to make sure you've got something to give her from me." He dropped back into his seat with a soft thud. His eyes followed her to the table, as she collected a few of her school books, before heading back to the couch. Her step was light, and when she positioned herself on the end, facing him, he realized that she really was going to skirt right over their recurring issue.  _Don't do it_ , his mind cautioned him, even as he was sitting up and moving his iPad off of the arm of the chair.  _Don't bring it up_. "You kissed me." It wasn't exactly what he wanted to say, and definitely not how he planned to say it, but it came out anyway.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Maya freeze, taking a quick breath before readjusting her texts. "I did."

He popped the knuckles on his left hand, trying his hardest to keep looking at her. "Maya," his fingers twitched. She still didn't look up. "You kissed me." Maya nodded, head down. She shuffled a few more pages and opened her notebook back up to where she'd left it. When she mouthed the same two words over, he tilted his chin, watching her try not to do the same. "Are we not going to talk about that?"

"We didn't talk about the last kiss," her voice was insistent. "Or the one before that."

"We talked before the one before that." And yes, he really did just almost confuse himself. "Or, rather, you talked. I just kind of stood there dumbly as you announced that any relationship we would have is doomed from the start and the fallout would be catastrophic, so we might as well just skip it." If he didn't know any better, Josh would have said that Maya had started to blush. "And the night of the BFAE –" was it right for him to point out that she had instigated that kiss. That she had wanted it just as much as he had. "I thought you just wanted to be friends."

Her nod was automatic. "I do," she said immediately. Something in the way the words came out of her mouth said that if that was all she was getting, she would be happy with it. "Josh, we are friends."

"Then what's up with the kissing?" There might actually come a point in Josh's life when he would start to count the number of ridiculous sentences that he uttered in the presence of Maya Hart. Something told him that this was far from the last.

Maya picked at the nail of the finger she wore her friendship ring on with the thumbnail of the opposite hand. "This relationship  _is_  doomed from the start," she began, wishing that she weren't sitting on Cory and Topanga's couch and there could have been a bottle in her hand. "But that doesn't mean that I –" She swallowed mid-word.

"You want to kiss me?" It was a statement much more than a question, but Josh allowed it roll off his tongue anyway. "There's just no hope of it ever going anywhere."

Was Maya shaking again? "It  _can't_  go anywhere." She was more adamant this time. "You're a Matthews -"

"Really?" His voice was more flippant than he thought it should be. "I wasn't aware."

"You're Riley's uncle," she spoke over him. "If things are good, and I mean  _really_  good, she  _might_  be okay with this." Maya cringed and pulled her knees up to her chest. "But if they're not – and let's face it here, I'm a disaster just waiting to happen. The longest relationship I've  _ever_  had is a friend with benefits situation with a guy that deserves  _so_  much more – then we're going to have to deal with the fallout, and things are going to get awkward for her – which one of us is she going to side with? Birthdays. Holidays. it would make things really difficult for her, and I just can't do that."

Josh wanted to make a comment about how she used to complain that Riley could ramble. Then he caught the look in her eye and he just couldn't do it. Maya was genuinely concerned with the effect that any relationship she had could possibly have on her best friend. "You'd really give it all up for Riley?"

He hadn't realized that he'd spoken aloud until Maya nodded. "I think you misjudged how much I value my friendship."

It seemed he'd misjudged a lot of things. "So it doesn't go anywhere." He started, pulling himself up out of the chair. Never in his life had he thought it possible to understand what had started her arrangement with Lucas. If the younger man saw just a fraction of what he did when he looked at Maya, it was no wonder that he'd been willing to take what she offered. Josh set himself onto the couch next to her, hand running up her leg. "We're friends."

Maya took a shaky breath. She'd managed to stay ahead of this. "We're friends," she repeated calmly, her wringing hands betraying her façade. "And sometimes, friends kiss, right?"

It was the out she was looking for. An excuse to keep acting on whatever feelings she was fighting for the sake of her friendship. "I have heard of a few." This probably wasn't the time to bring up Friar or their arrangement.

There wasn't a word to describe the look that crossed her face. Maya dropped one hand to Josh's, her smile soft. "Thank you," she whispered.

"Anytime." Josh let go of her hand and moved to stand again.

"Hey, Josh?" He turned before he could get to his feet, and Maya's arm reached out for him again. "Sometimes friends kiss, right?"

He couldn't help the laugh this time. "Auggie's upstairs," he reminded her.

Leveraging Maya into his lap took almost no effort on Josh's part. She paid no heed to the textbook that slid onto the floor, focusing instead on the way his hands anchored to her hips, and their lips brushed. Maya kissed the way she lived, it seemed, confident and wild. He lost track of how many times their lips touched, and he tried to ignore the steady hum in the back of his mind telling him he'd just agreed to the one situation that only guaranteed that this will blow up in his face later.

When Cory and Topanga arrived back at home a little before eleven, they were back on two separate sides of the room, fully immersed in their own studies. They shared a look when Cory asked if they'd had any trouble, and another kiss before they separated at the Bleecker Street station, Maya on the M headed toward Shawn's and Josh waiting for the 6 to his own.

"Text me your schedule for the next few weeks," he told her sternly as her train pulled into the station. "So Austin and I know when to expect you."

Maya saluted him with the arm that wasn't steadying her tote. "Yes, sir."

"And text me when you get home!" He called after her, a smile tugging his cheeks.

Her response was to stick her tongue out at him, the doors muffling her laughter.

* * *

 

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay readers, I have decided to share a little piece of myself here with you guys. In order to help me envision the various situations I put out characters into, and to set the mood, I have created a Polyvore and a few playlists that match up with my vision of who the characters are.
> 
> The Polyvore can be found at and-the-moments-gone [period] Polyvore [period] com [slash] ?filter=collections  
> It currently houses the clothing worn by Maya and Riley in this story (more to come). I also update it every few chapters, in case you're interested.
> 
> I'm still hoping that someone will save me from the creation of album covers for my 8tracks playlists. If anyone is interested in the songs that will be appearing there - or has a better understanding of Photoshop than I do and can lend me a hand - leave it in your review!
> 
> Coming Soon:
> 
> If he thought they could get away with it, Lucas would have begged for one of her traveling companions to confiscate Maya's phone the second they left Penn. It was a shame that Farkle loved her too much, and Will would most likely lose an appendage.


	18. Interlude: Out of the Woods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He had to stop himself from physically deflating. It had been a matter of time; Lucas was sure of it. What he wasn’t sure of was why he felt like he’d been kicked in the stomach. But he’d have to examine that later, most likely when he was caught thinking about why it was that Maya had spent a great deal of energy trying to hide it from him.

Title: Sooner or Later  
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World  
Author: And The Moment's Gone  
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T  
Words: 5,050  
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are freshmen in college, Josh is a senior, Cory still lives in denial. 

Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song Sooner or Later and I don't own that either.

* * *

It was pretty fair to say that if his cell phone chirped one more time in the next minute and a half, Lucas Friar was going to toss the damn thing out the window.

And then he was going to hop out of the cab of the truck and retrieve it.

He was annoyed, not stupid.

It was a four-hour drive from Ithaca to New Haven, and while Lucas didn’t mind road tripping – especially not for an occasion such as surprising Riley for her eighteenth birthday – he really wished that he could have done it without Maya texting him every few minutes worrying about him being on time to pick them up from the train station and that everything would be perfect.

Yes, he was aware that he needed to leave the townhouse before noon. Yes, he made sure the truck was clean yesterday between classes. That was also when he had made sure to remind his professors that he had arranged to miss his Friday classes and that he would get both the lectures and work from someone so he wouldn’t miss anything. No, Maya really didn’t need to remind him to pack his present to Riley, and she certainly didn’t need to tell him three times that the train was early. And yes, he was abiding by the state regulated speed limit.

If he thought they could get away with it, Lucas would have begged for one of her traveling companions to confiscate Maya’s phone the second they left Penn. It was a shame that Farkle loved her too much, and Will would most likely lose an appendage.

There was a brief moment when Lucas wondered if they knew she was as freaked out about this as he did. He was also curious as to whether or not her agitation was one hundred percent equated with Riley’s birthday. This was a hell of a lot of anxiety over a weekend with friends, no matter the occasion.

R2D2 beeped again, and he cursed under his breath as he reached for the phone in the cup holder one more time.

**Train’s pulling in. Please tell me u’re here.**

He strongly considered telling her he was stuck in traffic. Instead, he propped his hands up on the steering wheel, aiming the camera on his phone directly at the building ahead of him. He made sure to include the antique street lamp with the words ‘Union Station’ printed on the base of the light.

 **Take a breath**.

Shaking his head, Lucas grabbed his wallet from the center console and popped open his door, He made sure that the truck was locked before he skipped across the street, slipping in behind an older couple and holding the door for a woman and her toddler. They hadn’t prearranged a meeting place – Maya hadn’t been _that_ anal, thank God – so once he made it down the escalator he stepped up to one of the long wooden benches, eyes on the arrivals door.

He saw Farkle first, leather jackets over his Stanford hoodie, hair suitably mussed for having spent two and a half hours traveling with Maya. He had his leather duffle slung over one shoulder and his laptop bag over the other. Lucas couldn’t help but be impressed at the fact that he didn’t look like he’d had to deal with airport security, a five-hour flight from coast to coast, and then a train ride all in the same day. Beside him was Will, as clean pressed as ever in a button down over jeans. Poor guy’s hat was on backward, but it was the only indication that he wasn’t the future surgeon that his family expected him to be.

Which brought him to the short blonde bobbing between the two. Even from the other side of the room he could tell that Maya was full of nervous energy. He knew she felt him before she actually saw him, flipping her aviators to the top of her head and fiddling with something inside the pocket of her blazer.

He didn’t call out to her; he didn’t have to. She paused when she recognized him, dropping her weekender at Will’s feet and racing towards him as fast as his wedges would allow.

“Now I know something’s wrong,” he whispered into her hair after landing a kiss to her cheek. He had been aiming for her lips, but she turned at the last second, burying her face into his clavicle. She gave a quick shake of her head as she pulled away, and Lucas couldn’t hide his laugh at the fact that Farkle had dutifully picked up the bag Maya dropped, holding it out for him to take.

“Later,” Maya still wouldn’t meet his eyes. “Riley’s expecting me on the Old Campus Green in less than an hour, and we still need to get checked into the hotel.”

Her bag slung easily over his shoulder, and Lucas hugged Farkle before sliding his arm around Maya’s shoulder, nodding to the escalator. “Señor Travel Agent?” Farkle sped up a step, falling into line on the other side. “Where am I going?”

“We’re at the Omni again,” the genius pulled his phone from his pocket, scrolling through his notes. “Maggie booked us three of the larger rooms. I figured we could divvy them up after we picked up the Birthday Girl.” There was a brief period where Lucas had to remind himself that this was a Minkus funded trip and that almost all travel arrangements had gone through one of Stewart’s personal assistants. “We’ve got reservations for L’orcio at six, and then curtain’s up on _Cymbeline_ at eight.”

Will stepped up to take Farkle’s place as they crossed the street. “You’re sure she doesn’t suspect we’re coming?”

Her eyes rolled even as she tried to change her stride to step out from under Lucas’s arm. “This is me you’re talking about Sir William.” Maya flipped her hair over her shoulder; her aviators dropped neatly onto the bridge of her nose. “I could tell her that the apartment burnt down last night because I was attacked by an army of pygmy unicorns and she’d eat up every word.”

As much as any of them hated to admit it, Maya wasn’t wrong.

The bags were stowed under the tonneau of Lucas’s F-150, and it went without saying that when they all headed to their doors, Maya automatically got shotgun. Lucas snuck a glance at her as he turned the engine over, reaching up to put directions to the Omni into his navigation system.

“You okay?”

Maya didn’t say anything for a long second, her eyes flicking from the windshield to her hands and back again. “All good,” she spat out.

“That’s not gonna work for me much longer.” He didn’t acknowledge her nod, double checking that everyone had their seatbelts on so he could back out of his parking space. “You gonna want a shower, or just to change clothes?” Lucas caught Farkle’s eye in the rear view.

“Minkus had a shower when he got off the plane at JFK,” Maya informed the truck dutifully. There was absolutely no downtime between her buckling her seatbelt and reaching to the dash to sync her phone to the radio. Had she actually waited, he would have just handed her his phone to pick the music anyway. “And if he doesn’t want me to leave his ass at the hotel, he’s going to pull out one of those very nice button down shirts, run a hand through his hair, and call it good.”

There was a slight motion in the mirror and the younger man eyed Maya sharply. ‘She’s been like this all day,’ the genius mouthed carefully. Aloud he stated, “The lady has spoken.” Lucas nodded. “I need to wash my face really quick, but I should be ready in ten minutes, tops.”

Lucas took that to mean that he had roughly that span of time to figure out what was wrong with the blonde. He may not be able to fix it as quickly, but anything would be better than the hyperaware woman sitting next to him. The arrow on his dash navigated him from Church Street to Temple, and he made it into the parking garage with Maya humming along to whatever it was coming out of his sound system.

He brought the vehicle to a stop at the ticker, rolling down his window to take one when Farkle shook his head. “Just use the valet,” he decided, pulling the reservation up again and handing his phone to Lucas. “I don’t feel like walking.”

Talking to the attendant took less than a minute, with Lucas handing over the MyKey, and taking the stub that he was supposed to hand to the front desk. While he, Maya and Will were grabbing the bags, Farkle had gone ahead, circumventing the regular front desk in favor of the concierge and introducing himself as the son of Stewart Minkus. It wasn’t his usual way of handling things, but Omni policy stated that you weren’t allowed to check into a hotel room unless you were 21 and had a valid ID, and since they were all without one of those qualifications, the Minkus name had to come into play. They were given a handful of key envelopes – two keys to each room and spare envelopes – and he was ready to show them to the elevators when they finally made it into the building.

“We’ve got two kings and a double.” He divvied the keys out as he spoke, deliberately handing Will the key to the room with the two double beds and Lucas and Maya each a key to the second room with a king sized bed. When Maya’s eyebrow quirked, he smiled. “I know that room assignments are tentative until we pick up Riley, but I figured this would be the most efficient.”

Maya grumbled, saying nothing.

The elevator dinged, and the doors opened, and Farkle pointed to the left when directing them to their rooms. Their rooms were a third of the way down the corridor, with no turns, and Lucas paused in front of Farkle’s room door while Maya stepped up to theirs.

“You sure you’ve got this?” Farkle’s darted to Maya’s back before focusing on opening the door to his own room.

“Yeah,” the lock popped on the door in front of Maya and Lucas nodded. “Take your time.” He caught the door with his foot just as it as about to snick shut, toeing it open far enough for him to slip in.

It didn’t surprise him that Maya was already on the other side of the room. She had her weekender propped up in the chair in the corner, and he smiled when she pulled one of her purses out of the bag and pulling the handbag organizer out of the bottom of the tote she had carried with her though the train station. For a girl who didn’t travel much, she seemed to be extremely well organized.

Her head jerked when the door closed behind him, and he could tell the exact moment that it occurred to her that they were alone. Distress ghosted across her eyes as she returned to her task. “Farkle better hurry his little ass up.” She took a deep breath, pulling her wallet out next, checking the contents, and dropping it into her purse.

“Okay. That’s is.” He dropped his own bag at the foot of the bed and ran a hand over his face. “Out with it.”

Her eyebrows went wide. “Out with what?”

“You said ‘later’.” He reminded her as he took a step forward. “It’s later.”

Licking her lips, Maya shook her head. “It’s not ‘later’.” They’d done this dance a thousand times, and Lucas couldn’t help the chuckle when he took a step forward, and she answered with a footfall back. “And its Riley’s weekend.” She reminded him diligently. “We don’t have time for this.”

“We’re going to make time.” Lucas took another step forward, this time making sure that her next one back would land her between the chair and the desk.

There was nowhere left for her to go.

“And if I can tell something’s up, don’t you think that she’ll be able to?” He nodded to the way she was worrying her lip between her teeth, fingers picking at nails.

“Riley will believe me when I say ‘it’s nothing’.” Maya shot back defiantly.

Lucas leaned into her space, face inches from hers. “And that’s why you’ve got me.”

She seemed to think for a moment, weighing odds about something. Lucas had zero warning before she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling her body up against his and diving headlong into a kiss.

He would have accepted it. Hell, Lucas wanted to accept it; to just let Maya have this and not question her further. But there was something in the way she was clawing at his shoulders, the way her lips drank him in and her right hand ran through the hair at the nape of his neck, that tasted of desperation.

And that was a game that neither one of them played.

So he took as much of a breath as her lips would allow, and firmly pulled himself away from her.

He wasn’t surprised in the least to see that she wasn’t confused at his action.

She actually looked relieved.

Lucas dropped a quick kiss to the temple and pulled her to his chest. “What’s going on with you?”

“Sometimes friends kiss.” Lucas had to admit that that statement made absolutely _no_ sense to him, but it had been said underneath Maya’s breath, and the accompanying sigh reminded him that waiting for the explanation would most likely be worth it.

When she wasn’t immediately forthcoming, he rocked back onto his heels and dipped to look her in the eye. “They do.”

His second clue was the fact that she refused to meet his eyes. It seemed trivial, Maya appeared evasive by nature, but it was something that Lucas wasn’t used to experiencing. Instead, her gaze landed somewhere between his lips and the line of his button down.

When her finger caught her cuticle, she winced, and Lucas had to resist the urge to ask her whether or not she had made any new friends she kissed. It would be petty, possibly sounding far more jealous than he felt, and again, neither of those things were a part of what he and Maya had going. The first half of a thought cropped back up, the words seeming to form on her forehead.

New friends she kissed.

 _Josh_.

There were days Lucas Friar despised how well he knew Maya Hart.

“Shortstack?” A quick tap on her nose brought her eyes up. “Clock’s ticking sweetheart.” Her mouth opened, and he shook his head. “And we’re not tabling this until later. You don’t get to get out of this that easily.”

Both lips sucked into her mouth now, and eyes twitching from left to right in an attempt of searching for an escape.

Lucas braced his arm on the wall behind her head.

There was a knock on the door. A quick tap that Farkle had demonstrated many times in the group’s history together. Relief flooded Maya’s eyes, and Lucas just shook his head. “Grab the MyKey from valet” He called out behind him, his eyes not leaving hers. “We’ll meet you at the truck.”

Another tap, and then Farkle –and presumably Will– was gone.

Blue eyes widened.

His smirk just got wider.

Lucas was well aware of the moment that Maya finally admitted defeat. Her shoulders sagged, chin dropped, and –dare he even think it- she appeared shorter.

“Josh.” Her voice was small again, and Lucas just nodded. “I’ve been kissing Josh.”

He had to stop himself from physically deflating. It had been a matter of time; Lucas was sure of it. What he wasn’t sure of was why he felt like he’d been kicked in the stomach. But he’d have to examine that later, most likely when he was caught thinking about why it was that Maya had spent a great deal of energy trying to hide it from him.

“How long?”

“Just the last week.” She still hadn’t moved, eyes planted firmly on his chin. “It’s not _going_ anywhere.”

His entire body convulsed and Lucas pulled his arm away from the wall to keep from punching it. They’d had six dozen conversations since her and Josh’s first kiss, more than half of that since the night of the ‘non-date’. There had been ample opportunity for him not to get blindsided with this. “It’s not going anywhere?” He said instead of what was running through his mind.

“It’s not,” she was too adamant, too sure. “He and I talked about it.” Her voice picked up strength that she didn’t seem to have anywhere else. “It’s just kissing.”

“And you and I are ‘just sex.’” It was a cheap shot, and Lucas turned himself around so Maya wouldn’t see the flicker of _something_ cross his face. He still had no idea where this was coming from.

Maya caught his arm and pulled him back a step. “That’s not fair.”

It wasn’t. Lucas’s eyes caught hers and they both knew that he wished that it hadn’t come out of his mouth.

One deep breath, and then another. “You’re right, I’m sorry.” His hand was shaking when he ran it over his face. “Maybe I should have let you table this.”

The giggle was manic, and Lucas felt Maya’s hand ghost up his bicep to pull him the rest of the way around. She cupped his cheek in her palm and brought his forehead down to hers. “It’s just kissing.”

 _Until it’s not_. His phone chirped in his pocket, and Lucas had to resist the urge to drop a kiss between her brows as they pulled apart. “We’re coming back to this.” He checked his pocket for his wallet and sent a quick text to Farkle that they were on their way down.

Maya’s head bobbed as she readjusted the strap on her platform sandal and nodded.

* * *

 

Maya’s original plan involved meeting Riley at the prearranged spot –just inside Phelps Gate- while the boys waited in the car. Lucas wasn’t entirely sure who realized that leaving the three of them in the small enclosed area would result in someone murdering Will, but Maya was quick to agree to a change in plan when Farkle cut the poor kid off mid-babble about how excited he was to see his girlfriend.

For the third time.

Which was why he watched the blonde readjust her blazer from the cover of the Gate, Will tapping his foot against the wall beside them as Maya scrolled through  her phone as she absently paced in front of the statue in the middle of the quad. The only sign that she was still thinking about their conversation in the room was the twitch of her pinky against the bottom of the phone case.

They saw Riley approach before Maya did, bundled up in her black crossover top and skinny jeans. Even though it was fairly warm for a December afternoon, Riley was still wearing her pale pink woolen duster, and Lucas could see the leather gloves she had worn earlier that morning peeking out from one pocket.

“Peaches!” Riley dropped her phone into her oversized bag and threw her arms wide, even though she was still a good ten feet away from her best friend.

Maya spun, her top handle tote swinging on her elbow, the hand holding her phone dropping limply. “Honey!” There were a few giggles, and more than one hug that seemed to go on forever before Maya pulled back and held her best friend at arms length, “Do you want your birthday present now, or later?”

“I thought you were the present!” Riley was bouncing again, both arms around her friend. “You didn’t have to come up here _and_ bring me something!”

Over Riley’s shoulder, Maya caught Lucas’s eye. “Yeah, well this isn’t exactly something I can return.”

The brunette in her arms stiffened, and Maya’s eyes widened as Riley pulled away a second time. “How much did you spend?” She snapped, arms coming up to cross against her chest.

“Nothing.” The voice was emphatic. Her lips tried not to smile.

Will’s tapping got louder.

“Nothing?” Why was everyone so intent on mimicking her today? “You spent ‘nothing’ on a gift that you can’t return?” Maya nodded. “Is it a painting?!”

Another laugh and the smile on Maya’s face only got wider. “It is most certainly not a painting.” She had a canvas for Riley, tucked safely in the girl’s room at the Matthews house for Cory to bring up when they moved her back in after winter break, but she was getting further and further away from her actual surprise. Allowing Riley to remain confused, Maya slung her arm around the taller girl, turning her in the direction of the gate. “And while you’re guessing, we have dinner reservations.”

“Reservations?” Riley allowed herself to be propelled forward, her voice tight. “Where?”

“L’orcio.” It was a statement, and Lucas smiled when Riley’s eyes widened. He knew what she was thinking, they had all had that thought when Maya had Skyped them together to plan for this event. L’orcio was a Zagat rated Italian restaurant, and its prices showed it. Maya had been saving her tips for weeks in order to afford this trip before it was decided that the rest of them would be joining, and even then she demanded that she’s paying for Riley’s meal. “Are you okay going in that, or do you want to go back to the hotel and change?” Another once over of Riley’s attire told Lucas nothing, she looked just as dressed up as Maya did.

“Hotel?” The taller girl sputtered, and Maya’s arm seemed to be the only thing keeping her moving. “I thought you’d just stay with me.” She blinked when Maya only shrugged. “Callie said she’d crash at Michael’s if she needed to.” Riley seemed less thrilled about her roommate staying with the boyfriend she’d only had for two weeks, but it was a sweet gesture. “You don’t have to pay for a room.”

“And _that’s_ the beauty of this weekend.” Maya spun in a circle as they hit the concrete path. They had maybe four or five more steps before they would reach the guys, hidden in the shadow of the archway. Riley arched a brow, and Maya began walking backward, arms wide.

Riley’s brow furrowed, and if they weren’t in public –her peers milling about in the rare warm December air- he could have sworn that she was about to ask Maya if she’d lost her mind. “Peaches…”

She didn’t notice when Farkle stepped out behind her, Riley hadn’t even been paying attention to the fact that she just passed Lucas and her boyfriend on the other side. They fell into step and Maya spun again to loop her arm through her best friends. “You only turn eighteen once Riles,” Maya stopped when they stepped out from the archway. Will stepped up behind Riley and Maya leaned back into Lucas. “And we’re not letting you do it alone.”

There was a pause, as it seemed to catch up to the birthday girl exactly what was happening. Had it not been for his years of experience –and the fact that Maya had successfully steered them out of the covered walkway- Lucas probably would have suffered severe hearing loss at the squeal that followed when Riley realized that she was surrounded by friends and in the arms of her boyfriend.

“PEACHES!” Trying to encompass all of them in her arms, Riley launched herself at Maya. “YAY!”

If there was ever any doubt that missing a few classes and spending almost five hours in his car was worth it –conversation with Maya notwithstanding- seeing the look on both girl’s faces would have sealed it. Riley bounced from person to person, sharing hugs and squeals before Farkle checked his phone, announcing that if they didn’t leave soon they’d be late for dinner. 

* * *

 

“O for a Muse of fire,” Maya threw herself at Farkle, “that would ascend.       The brightest heaven of invention!”

They had waited until they had placed their order to inform Riley that they were going to see the brunette’s favorite Shakespeare play at the Shubert. The resulting squeal had caused Will to throw both hands over Riley’s mouth –he may or may not have been licked for that- in order to stave off the looks they were receiving from the other patrons. Riley had immediately jumped into a soliloquy on how much she adored everyone before Maya announced that she loved _Cymbeline_ as well. No one had believed her.

If it were anyone else currently laying across his lap, Farkle would have dumped them on the floor. Instead, he braced a hand on the inside of Maya’s arm to keep her from rolling. “You realize that you’re quoting _Henry V_?” He bumped his chin to her forehead. “Which is _not_ what we’re watching tonight.”

Maya straightened her back immediately, using her hips to leverage her off of the genius. “Oh,” she shook her head, eyes cast to Will as if choosing a new victim. “Oh teach me how I should forget to think!”

The poor man never stood a chance as the blonde wrapped her arms around him, head falling to his shoulder. “That’s Romeo and Juliet,” Will said slowly, eyes searching from the top of Maya’s head to Riley.

“Hell is empty.” Maya deadpanned, placing herself correctly in her seat. “All the devils are here.”

Farkle shook his head. “At this point you’re just effing with us, aren’t you?”

Lucas watched her upper lip cock as she took a sip of her virgin sangria. Her eyes darkened when she realized she was being watched, but Maya kept the smile on her lips all the same.

“Curtain’s in twenty,” the official timekeeper announced, pointing to his watch. When Maya started to look around for the waitress, it was Farkle’s turn to grin. “Does anyone need to use the bathroom before we go?”

“We’re not kindergartners.” Maya’s impatience was showing. The waitress hadn’t been to the table since she removed a few of the plates after Farkle had been to the restroom himself.

Riley was already on her feet. “Guilty,” she held a hand up, smiling when Will rose too. “You gonna walk me?”

Whatever it was that Will responded with was drowned out by the most annoyed groan that had come from Maya in recent history. “You already paid the bill, didn’t you?” She was glaring at the genius now, arm waving. “I told you that I was going to pick up my own check on this one!”

Just as many years before Lucas had silenced the man currently being fussed at, he stepped up behind where Maya stood and wrapped his arms around her head, forearm coming up squarely over her mouth. “I’m gonna take her to start the car.” Lucas used the leverage he had on her neck to nod along with him before reaching out with one hand and grabbing her purse and blazer off of the back of her chair.

He got her two steps out of the building before Maya used the thick heel of her platform sandal on the meaty part of the top of his foot. Cursing carefully, Lucas actually laughed when she danced away from him, taking her jacket with her. “Was that really necessary?”

“Were you planning on yelling at Farkle some more?” They both knew the answer to that. “Think of it this way, you can apply the money somewhere else this weekend.”

Maya seemed to consider it, shrugging on the blazer before holding her hand out for her purse, slipping a free arm into his as they made their way to the crosswalk. “Riley and I could get tattoos.”

“Don’t even joke about that.” He dropped her arm and moved to wrap his around her shoulders. “The last thing any of us needs is Mr. Matthews ‘Maya-Mayhem-Radar” going off and him showing up in the middle of the night screaming at us all.”

Maya wished that she could say that Lucas was just joking. It was a shame that it had actually happened.

Twice.

She smiled anyway. “Yeah,” a twitch, and she felt Lucas run his free hand down her spine. “We’re totally getting tattoos.”

It could have been the night, still uncharacteristically warm for the first weekend in December, or it could have been the way that Maya flipped her braid over her shoulder –smacking him in the face on purpose; either way when they got to the truck, Lucas opened the passenger door for her, spinning Maya around and using her hips for leverage to pick her up and set her in the seat. Her purse was dropped into the floorboard and her arms were around his shoulders automatically.

“I thought you wanted to talk about it.” She whispered as he ducked into the cab to press his forehead to hers.

This was the part where Lucas was supposed to pull away. Maya had told him –no matter how reluctantly- that she was starting something with someone else. History and the rules dictated that this was the part where Lucas would take the high road, kiss her on the forehead and tell her to let him know when certain services were needed again.

His eyes caught hers, and he had no idea what Maya read in his expression.

But it had been too long, for both of them. And of the four people that Lucas trusted when the heat rushed through his veins, Maya was the only one who had been able to staunch it.

“Tell me when it becomes something more.” His head dipped to close the distance between them, his knee resting against the edge of the door so he could pull the rest of his body into the v created by her legs.

He said _when_ not _if_. A distinction that would most definitely cause an argument later.

But if Maya could be selfish sometimes, so could he.


End file.
